The Second Gig
by SvenTheImmortal
Summary: 'The Second Gig' is a KiGo fan-fic taking place three months after Graduation.  The story centers on Kim getting captured, her rescue, and the fallout of what happened while she was being held captive.  Rated M for an excess of high-octane nightmare fuel.
1. Chapter One: In Via Ut Fortuna

DISCLAIMER: I do not own anything, and am not seeking to infringe upon the rights of anyone. All characters are copyright their respective copyright holders; any original characters are mine, any other characters belong to their respective parties.

* * *

Chapter One: In via ut fortuna…

Each one, and all of us, in turn,  
In grace and glory, or in stumbling madness,  
Must find our own way out of Hell,  
One step at a time.

At Dr. Drakken's Evil Lair…

"Shego, there's someone at the door!" Dr. Drakken shouted. "Shego!"

"Yeah, yeah, keep your pants on, blue boy!" she called back, huffing her way to the door to the lair. She was wearing, uncharacteristically, a very lightweight pink t-shirt and boxers. Without checking to see who it was, assuming that it would be a delivery man with the pizza Dr. Drakken had ordered, she threw open the heavy door and snapped, "What do you want?"

"Well, good morning to you, too," said the person on the other side of the door.

"Betty," began Shego, exceptionally crossly, "what could be _so_ important that you have to drag your ass out here on a weekend? I just got back from a trip; I haven't even done anything yet!"

"Kim's been taken," said the solemn voice of Dr. Director, "and as good as we are, this is the sort of thing we'd call Kimberly in to handle. As much as I hate to admit it, we don't have a lot in the way of subtle."

Shego's face twisted into a grotesque rage, her eyes glaring as if to burn a hole through the woman at the door. "You woke me up to get me to save Kimberly Ann Possible?" she shouted, attempting to guilt-trip Dr. Director with the not-so-carefully-crafted lie. She rubbed her brow, and slammed the door shut. She turned to walk away and heard through the door the muffled and almost indistinguishable sound of Dr. Betty Director shouting something to her. Against her better judgment, she opened the door again. "What did you say?"

"You heard me," said Dr. Director, smiling.

Shego crossed her arms angrily. "No, I didn't. That door, it's pretty fucking big, and it blocks a lot of sound, so just tell me what you said and get out of here."

"I'll give you a full pardon if you rescue Kim," she said, picking up a rolled-up piece of paper from the ground next to her and holding it out.

Shego snatched and examined it, reading every word written on it carefully. "Full pardon for me and blue in there, if and when I return Kimberly Ann Possible to you. Why do you think we'd go for that? We've already been pardoned, he's trying to take over the world, and I'm a thief," she said, adding a second later, "a very happy, very successful thief who loves her job."

"You were only pardoned in the US. This is a Global Justice pardon, which covers every country in the world with any legal system," Dr. Director said. "So even if you _do_ go back, you'll at least be able to take a vacation first," she paused for a second, "well, one _without_ worrying about someone trying to hunt you down."

Shego sighed. "Fine, but I want $10,000 US first, and if you screw me on this, I'll break into every Global Justice facility _just_ to set off the self-destruct."

Dr. Director picked up a suitcase from behind her and opened it in front of Shego. "It _is_ your standard service retainer. Welcome aboard, _Agent Green_."

* * *

The Next Day…

Shego adjusted her course aboard her jet and grumbled to herself, "Why did I get myself into this." As if to answer, the comm. screen in the dash alerted her to an incoming call. "I'm busy," she snapped as she answered it. The stern face of Dr. Director appeared on the screen, any disciplined look offset slightly by an eyebrow raised in skepticism. "Actually, as you can see, I'm not busy; it's just a euphemism for 'get the hell out of here.'"

"We've tracked her position, _Greg_" she replied, "and we're ready to send her coordinates to you." She turned her head and nodded to someone off screen, and turned back to Shego. "The coordinates should be on the screen now."

Shego turned her attention to several panels around her cockpit, adjusting the autopilot heading to the coordinates which were overlaid on the comm. screen. She turned back to the screen and spoke in mock-military style, "Coordinates set, requesting radio silence." Before Dr. Director had time to reply, she slammed the panel, shutting off the video feed.

She stood up, stretched her back, and walked into the cabin of the jet, where she'd arranged several sets of equipment. "_You'll have to be prepared to provide emergency triage to Kim in the event that she has been harmed,_" she remembered Dr. Director saying before she'd left the lair. "_We're fairly certain that there are more people in the facility, however the only one you'll need to rescue is Ms. Possible. If, from the good of your heart, you feel the need to rescue everyone, we'll consider extending the offer we made to you to encompass other… Benefits._"

She sighed. '_Good of my heart my ass,_' she thought to herself as she set up the medical equipment in preparation for her arrival at the facility in twenty minutes. '_She just wants me to do her job for her. What could she possibly offer me to make it worth risking my ass for any of them except…_' She stopped thinking, stopped working, and carefully considered her next thoughts. '_Except Kim._' She suddenly felt a sharp wave of emotion wash over her, though she couldn't quite place exactly what it was that she was feeling. "Why am I feeling all sentimental over Princess?" she asked herself aloud as she returned to setting up the equipment. "Someone's going to get their ass kicked."

Her jet, complete with visible spectrum and thermal diffusion, gently lowered to the roof of the building. From the outside, it looked as though Shego had appeared out of thin air. She turned and smiled wryly at where her jet was sitting completely invisible, and thought, '_Dr. D. is _so_ not getting his hands on this thing for any more missions._'

Shego looked over the edge of the landing pad, which was located on the top of a twenty-story tower in the middle of a business complex, trying to get a feel for the layout of the building. Dr. Director had told her the exact location of her target; fifteenth story, high-security lab, northeast corner of the building. '_High security means high stakes,_' she thought to herself, '_maybe I can pick up a nice toy for Dr. D. After all, I _am_ getting a full pardon._' Deciding against breaking through the wall on the proper floor, and against taking the elevator from the roof access, she went over to one of the ventilation shafts.

The vent shaft was very large, certainly large enough for her to negotiate even if she had to carry Kim out herself, and stuck up about four feet from the roof of the building. There was an equally-large fan covering the vent, with painfully-obvious laser sensors to detect intruders. She chuckled and lit up her hands; seeing the wires for the sensors going down the right side of the vent, she cut the other three walls, allowing the raised portion to be bent along its right wall, keeping the connections intact and giving her full access to the shaft.

Quietly, she climbed down into the ventilation system and made her way down to the fifteenth floor. She kicked out a vent and dropped into a hallway; all ventilation access directly into any of the rooms, even what she assumed were the offices, had been covered with three inch-thick grates, with a sensor net on either side. She looked down the hallway, and frowned in dismay; there were no windows and no labels on the doors. She spun around as a door closed behind her and grabbed the man who had just come through, putting her arm around his throat and her other hand over his mouth. He was relatively short, with short but frizzy blonde hair, moderately thick glasses, and a white lab coat. "Help me and I'll let you live," she said. He nodded quickly, panicked. "Good. Now, I want you to take me to Kim Possible."

He mumbled, and against her better judgment, she moved her hand. "Please don't hurt me, I have a family; I'll do whatever you want. Kim's on the left, our other candidate is on the right," he said.

Shego thought for a moment and asked, with painful intensity, "How many people are you holding in this facility?"

"Just two," he answered. "Candidate A, Kim Possible, is in the room on the left. Candidate B, Joanne Woodward, is on the right."

"What did you do to them?" Shego shouted.

"Outlook alteration," he said, still panicked. "We're trying to turn heroes into villains by exposing them to a continuous stream of negative influence."

Shego quickly spun the man around, kneed him in the groin, and bashed her fist into his face, knocking him out. "God damn mind control," she whispered. She took the key from his pocket and placed it in the lock, turning it silently. Wary of what may lay inside, she lit her hands and slowly opened the door to where the man had said Kim was being held. What she saw snapped something in her core.

The room itself was sterile and windowless. Kimberly Ann Possible was strapped to a chair, an IV dripping into her arm. Her eyes were held open, and every few seconds a drop would fall from overhead into her eyes. Her ears were covered by headphones, and she was being forced to stare at an array of screens.

Pure, blind rage filled Shego's eyes, and for the first time since she'd become a villain her flames engulfed more than just her hands. Her entire body began to glow with the trademark green flames, and, unable to hold it in any longer, she screamed. All of the flames around her body were launched forward toward the screens in a single, enormous ball. The screens disappeared, destroyed so totally that not even smoke remained. Seconds later, her body was engulfed again in flames, and again she screamed. This time, the blast from her left destroyed the machinery feeding Kim from above while that from her right destroyed the wall between her and the hallway, as well as the wall between the hallway and the other room. Relaxing slightly, began to remove Kim from the machine.

As Shego unstrapped one of Kim's arms, she realized that the girl was completely limp. "Princess," she said softly, "can you hear me?" Kim didn't respond. Shego removed the tubes in Kim's throat; Kim began to cough, which was enough to bring her into reality for a moment. She threw herself around, thrashing with as much force as she could manage in an attempt to force her way from the grip of her bindings, until, seconds later, she fell catatonic once again.

Shego picked up Kim and carried her into the other room, setting her down just inside the hole she made in the wall. The scene was the same; a girl, not much older than Kim, or, for that matter, younger than herself, was strapped to a demonic contraption designed to force into her mind wicked thoughts to rend cleanly in two what concepts of morality she may hold. This time, though, it wasn't a wild rage that filled Shego's eyes, but a calm, determined sense of things. In her eyes was the same look that Kim had before every fight; a clarity of right and wrong which was unwavering and impenetrable.

Once again she let green flames engulf her body, and once again she systematically dismantled the workings contaminating the girl. When only the chair remained, she unstrapped the girl, who, too, was unresponsive. Unlike Kim, however, she didn't even react when the tubes were pulled from her throat. She carried the girl over to Kim, and laid her on the ground as well.

'_Great_,' she thought to herself, '_now I've got two people to haul out of here, which means the vents are out. I can't manage to blast and climb my way up five floors with the dead weight, so looks like the elevator is the only way up. God I hope that _doctor_ wakes up soon_.' She emphasized his profession with a sense of disgust. As soon as she thought that, she heard the man stirring outside. '_Well, at least things seem to be in time_.' She turned to grab him, and noticed a small video camera on a table by the hole. She grimaced at the thought of what had been taped, but grabbed the device anyway. She stormed out of the room and over to the guard, shoving the camera in his face as he lie on the floor in an attempt to recover from his previous ordeal. "What's on this tape?" she demanded with absolute rage.

"Sessions," he said, bluntly. "That is recorded video of every session of Subject B since day one. Everything that's happened since we brought her in is on that tape."

* * *

An Hour Later…

Shego threw a medical kit across the jet; every few minutes one of them would begin seizing, and she, lacking the means to strap them down, had to hold them down herself. The autopilot started beeping, and the jet slowly descended. As it did, Shego breathed a shallow sigh of deep relief. The rear hatch opened, and a Global Justice medical team stormed in, initially confused at the sight of two young women on the floor of the jet.

Dr. Director entered after the crew, with a look of satisfaction on her face as she looked at Shego, who had stepped off to the side to let the team have access to the two still-catatonic rescuees. "Thank you for bringing Kim back," she said with overemphasized sincerity, "and for bringing back another. How many were there in the facility?"

"Just the two, according to a scientist," Shego replied, watching as the medical team carried them out.

Dr. Director turned and looked at who had returned for the first time, and the dismay was evident on her face. "Ms. Woodward, one of our top recruits. She and Mr. Stoppable make quite a team," she said. "They must have taken her while she was on vacation. What were they doing to them, and did you manage to get any evidence?"

Shego thought for a moment, remembering the camera she'd left in the cockpit. "Brain washing," she replied bitterly. "And no, I didn't get any evidence."

Dr. Director sighed. "Alright," she said. One of the medical staff walked over to her and whispered something in her ear, and she rolled her eyes. "Excuse me, but there's been a bit of an incident. Apparently nobody checks their mail anymore…" She made gestures toward some of the personnel and they carried the two girls out on stretchers. Dr. Director turned around and walked out.

"And my reward?" Shego asked, loud enough for everyone to hear.

"I'll have it mailed to you tomorrow, as well as your bonus for Ms. Woodward's rescue," Dr. Director replied without hesitating. She stepped out of the jet and walked out of sight.

Shego stood there, looking out the hatch of her jet, a million thoughts running through her head. '_I just saved Kim Possible,_' she thought. '_My greatest adversary and I saved her. Not only that, but I saved some complete stranger! What's wrong with me? I must be going soft._' She turned around and slammed a button on the wall, closing the hatch. She strapped herself into the cockpit and took off.

Not a minute later, she tore off her harness and stormed into the cabin of the jet. She grabbed the first thing she could find, a glass bottle left by one of the medical teams, and she threw it as hard as she could against the wall. It shattered, spilling the remainder of its contents onto the wall. "Get a grip!" Shego shouted at herself. "Get a fucking grip! You are _not_ going soft! You did it for the money!"

The radio in the cockpit began to squawk. Shego climbed back into her seat and turned on her comm. screen. To her surprise, it was Dr. Director. "Calling all available Global Justice vessels, this is outpost zero niner niner. We are under attack, I repeat, we are under-", she said before the video was cut off by an explosion.

"I'm going to regret this," she said as she turned her jet around. She landed in the same place as before and climbed out, hands ablaze in anticipation of attack. The facility on the island had already been assaulted and evacuated; an entire wall had been blown out, and thick, black smoke was pouring from the hole. Shego, screaming in her head that she should just walk away, stormed over to the people who had managed to escape. "Where's Betty?" she demanded. The dazed guards stared at her in a half-trance. "Where is Dr. Director? Where the hell is your boss?"

"I'm right here," Dr. Director replied, coughing as she climbed through the smoke. "You're the last person I expected to see come rescue us."

"Hey, you can't sign the papers if you're dead," Shego replied. She looked around at the scene. "Where's Princess?"

"Still inside," Dr. Director coughed. "I had to come get a mask before I could get her."

"Don't bother," Shego replied, stealing a mask and tank from a guard. "Nobody kills Princess but me!" She took a deep breath and jumped into the building. There was an evacuation map on the wall; the facility was pretty basic, little more than a few administrative offices and some medical facilities. Shego blasted a hole in the wall into the medical bay large enough for her to carry out Kim and the other girl, but when she entered, only Kim was there, lying still. Shego grabbed her and darted out of the building.

"Where's Ms. Woodward?" asked Dr. Director, who had finally caught her breath.

"She wasn't in there," Shego replied, still holding Kim. Dr. Director held out her hands to take the girl from her arms, and Shego scoffed. "You think I'm going to leave her in your _capable_ hands again?" She stormed back into her jet, laying Kim on the floor. The door to the jet closed as she saw Dr. Director run over, an exceptionally cross look on her face. Shego smiled wickedly and waved to her.

* * *

Twenty Minutes Later…

Shego left the cockpit of her jet, having set the autopilot to land on the helipad on top of her apartment building on the outskirts of Middleton. Kim was strapped into one of the seats in the back. "Can you hear me, Princess?" she asked as she sat next to the girl who was lost in herself. Kim didn't reply. Shego frowned and unstrapped Kim, moving her to the floor. She laid Kim's head on her lap and ran her fingers through her hair. "I don't think I'll ever have another chance to say this," she began hesitantly, "but Pumpkin, I think I love you."

For the first time since the beginning of the ordeal, Kim seemed to respond in more than an automatic attempt to fight. She turned her head sideways and looked Shego square in the eyes. There wasn't anything behind the stare, only an open gaze, but the movement was deliberate. She opened her mouth, but nothing came out, and her chest began to rise and fall with rapid breath. Shego ran her hands through Kim's hair again, and smiled. "That's right, Kimmie, I love you. I know you're in there, and I know you can hear me, and I'm telling you to fight it. Whatever they did to you in that place, fight it." Shego's voice began to choke up, and her eyes filled with tears. "And when you're better, I promise that I'll retire from crime, and we can have a happy life together until we're both old and gray and have great-grandkids." She took a deep breath, and her face began to fill with a mix of anger and a twisted happiness. "Come on, Cupcake; you get better and we'll ruin the people who did this to you."

Kim's eyes snapped shut for a moment, and reopened with a great sadness behind them. "No," she whispered. "No revenge. Promise, no revenge."

Shego, who was mildly shocked at Kim responding to anything, smiled and said, "I promise, no revenge."

Kim smiled and said, "Sleep?" Shego nodded and Kim closed her eyes. "Thank you," she said as she drifted off into sleep.

Shego held the sleeping girl in her lap, tears welling in her eyes, holding ever tighter as the young woman thrashed around. "What did they do to you, Cupcake?"

* * *

That Night…

The front door blew open in front of a fit of green flames and Shego carried Kim into the living room of her apartment, both dripping wet from the rain, slamming it shut with her leg as she came in. She sat her down on the couch and started to walk away. Kim, curling up on the couch, let out a moan, and Shego bent back down and looked her straight in the eyes. Once again, there wasn't anything staring back at her, only eyes frozen wide open, blinking occasionally. She put her hand on top of Kim's head and said, with certain stoicism, "You're home now, Kimberly; you're safe. I'm going to go get you a drink. I'll be right back." She stepped away, and Kim whined a bit, closing her eyes.

Shego returned a minute later with a couple of mugs. She set one down on the table and put the other one up to Kim's lips, tipping it back slightly to help her. Kim started sputtering, and Shego drew the cup from her mouth and wiped the liquid from her chin as it ran down her face. Shego grabbed the blanket from the back of the couch and used it to wipe the rain from Kim's face and her hair as best she could. Kim started cooing softly as she did, and Shego smiled. Finally, Shego lifted Kim off the couch and sat her on her lap. "What did they do to you, little girl?" she whispered, more to herself than to Kim.

Kim shook her head from side to side a little, and whispered, almost inaudibly, "The nightmares."

"What about the nightmares?" Shego asked, holding the cold and shivering girl in her arms. "What nightmares?"

"These thoughts," Kim began a little louder than before, pausing. "It's this nightmare playing itself through my mind time and time again; a faceless rage forcing its way into every last part of my mind, into every last thought of every minute of every hour, day in and day out. When I sleep it only gets worse, giving faces to the voices." She put her head in her hands. "Why do I do this? Why do I save the world? Why is the world worth saving? The bad guys will always just try again, and more people will get hurt." She paused for a moment and whispered as soft as before, "Why don't I just kill them all and be done with it?"

She looked up at Shego, on whose face was a look of sadness, and Kim started to cry. Shego held in her arms the shaking Kim Possible, the girl who could do anything, as tight as she could hold, with Kim's head pressed firmly into her shoulder; she started humming to no tune in particular. "Shhh," she said, "it's going to be ok. Everything is going to be alright. You're Kim Possible, and anything's possible for a Possible, right?" Kim didn't reply, but rather made a muffled cooing sound. Shego upped her tone, speaking with gentle force. "Hey, Pumpkin, look at me." She turned Kim's head toward her own and stared straight into her eyes. "Don't you _dare_ start thinking like that. You are Kimberly Ann Possible. You have been saving the world since you were fifteen years old. You have single-handedly reformed the most wanted villain in the world. You trained a goofy buffoon of a nobody into an agent for the most powerful peace-keeping organization in the world. Now tell me, Princess, who are you?"

"I'm Kim Possible," she began. "I've been saving the world since I was fifteen, and I am a hero." Her last four words resonated with a style of certain bravado; a spirit, a level of assuredness, which told Shego that she was at least trying to pretend that she was her normal self.

"I don't know what happened to you, Kimmie, but if you decide you want to tell me, I'll always be ready to hear it," Shego said, standing up and picking her up. "Now come on, I'm going to carry you into bed and we're going to have a nice, quiet night."

* * *

The Next Morning…

Shego slowly opened her eyes and quietly drew in the situation. It was late in the morning on a spring day; the sun was shining brightly through her bedroom window, and the breeze every so often rustled the trees, and her hair. She was on her side, her arm over Kim's chest, holding her loosely, with Kim's arm resting below hers. Kim was wearing her bra and a pair of Shego's boxers, while she herself wore a white nightgown.

'_What the hell happened last night?_' she thought to herself. '_The last thing I remember is carrying her in here. I had a..._' She stopped, not daring to think her next thoughts. "Ugh," she said aloud.

Kim stirred at the sound of Shego's voice, and rubbed Shego's hand. "Mornin'," she said.

Shego sighed and said, "Mornin', Princess. I didn't mean to wake you."

Kim turned over and looked at her, smiling. "No big," she said. She noticed a small note of concern in Shego's lips. "What?"

"What happened last night?" she asked.

Kim rubbed her eyes and said, "You dressed me in this, laid me in bed, and tucked me in. Then, you drank a few shots, which eventually turned into half a bottle," she pointed to a half-finished bottle of Scotch on the nightstand behind Shego. "You paced around at the foot of the bed, bottle in hand, rambling about how you should have done this or changed that, until, finally, you climbed into bed, and, as you fell asleep, said, 'Maybe the tyranny of Murphy…'"

"Is the penalty for hubris," Shego finished with her. "It's my favorite quotation." Kim giggled. "What, you have a better one?"

"No, I just never expected something like that from you," Kim replied, smiling and kissing her on the cheek. "Just remember what you told me last night," she added. Shego stared at her in shock as she stood up and walked out of the room. Dumbfounded, she, too, got up, and followed Kim into the kitchen, where she was pouring cups of coffee for the two of them. Shego walked up to her and put her hand on Kim's waist.

"Um, Kimmie," Shego began, her mouth dry, "what promise did I make you last night?"

Kim frowned, handed her a cup of coffee, and said, "Well, when we were on the jet, you promised… I made you promise to stop acting like everyone who hurts me deserves to die."

Shego sighed. "Kimberly, dear, I sometimes forget that you are a child fighting the wars of adults in our precious world. What has happened, what they did to you… Did you have the nightmares again last night?" Terror filled Kim's eyes and she nodded, silent tears streaming down her cheeks. "Come here," she said as she pulled her in close and embraced her again. "I can't make right what has happened these past few days; I can't tell you that you're going to get past it in time, or that you'll ever be the same again, but I can tell you, from experience," she looked into the eyes of the still-terrified girl she held, "that you have friends who _want_ to help you. I know that it feels like people just want to help you out of pity, but the people who have been around you for years… They haven't changed. They were there for you before, out of love, and they'll be there for you now, out of that same love. Got it?" Kim nodded. "Good, now let's get you back to bed; it's hardly ten in the morning, and if anyone deserves a day in bed, it's you."

* * *

That Evening…

"Come on, Kimmie," Shego said as she shook Kim, who was lying next to her in bed, "it's time to get up. If you don't hurry, we'll be late for dinner."

Kim stirred and mumbled, "It's the weekend, mom, just five more minutes…"

Shego drew a skeptical look for a moment. "Normally I'd have a snarky comment, but I'm drawing a blank," Shego replied. "Now come on, it's time to get up." She grabbed the girl, who was facing away from her, and turned her over.

Kim opened her eyes, and found herself staring at Shego. "Um," she said, "you're… Uh, you're naked."

Shego smiled at her, unabashedly; the smile of a woman proud of her depravity. "We have dinner plans; you need to get up now," she said as she stood up and walked out of the room.

Kim stared at her as she walked, and when she was no longer in view, Kim shook her head, hard. "Not a side of Shego I thought I'd ever see," she said, getting out of bed. She threw off the covers and found that, much to her chagrin, she, too, was naked. "Shego!" she screamed as she pulled the covers back over her. Shego ran back into the room carrying a bottle of pills she'd been holding, concern evident in her posture. "Shego, why am I naked?"

"Because you apparently have no tolerance to alcohol," Shego laughed. Kim gave her a stern look, and she stopped. "You really don't remember, do you?"

"Not only do I not remember," she said crossly, "I don't believe you."

"How's your head?" Shego asked, throwing Kim the bottle. Kim caught it and read the label.

"Aspirin," Kim replied, "thanks." She took two of the pills and swallowed them. "In your crazy story, if I had been drinking, how much would I have had?"

"I'm not sure you really want to know," Shego replied, sitting down on the foot of the bed, still stark naked. Kim gave her an angry look. "Ok, ok… Three shots of Scotch."

Kim's jaw dropped and Shego patted her on the leg. "Three shots?" Kim asked meekly. Shego nodded and stood up. "I only had three shots?"

"Mmhmm, and you were bubbly," Shego replied slowly. She bent down and tore the sheets off of the shocked girl. "I'll tell you more, but you have to get ready. I took the liberty of getting something nice for you; it's in the closet." Shego walked out with a wide grin, and shut the door.

Kim looked around for the clothes she'd been wearing, but the entire room was clean. "Shego?" she yelled through the door.

"I sent them out to be cleaned last night," Shego called back, anticipating Kim's question. "They were stained and smelled like smoke, and I can't have you walking around like that, especially when I have something so nice for you. It's hanging in the closet; I'm sure you'll like it."

Kim relented and opened the closet; inside hung a black satin dry cleaner's bag with her name stitched into it in gold thread. Kim touched the stitching; it was stiff, and very smooth, but relented with slight pressure. Kim realized that the gold embroidery which constituted her name was done in thread made from actual gold. '_Just how much money does she have stored up?_' she wondered to herself. Trying not to dwell on the thought of her gift being purchased by Shego's ill-gotten gains, she gingerly removed the bag from the closet and placed it on the bed. Kim opened the bag lowly, as if to prevent some mysterious damage from occurring to the dress due to the mere action of opening its protective sleeve, and stood in silence at what she saw. Inside was a black dress, a pair of heels, and a hair tie.

It was, however, the details which made the items special. The dress was very simple on outward appearance; it was knee-length with a conservative neck line, despite only having only the right shoulder. There was a tag clipped delicately to the collar which read 'Material: Cashmere/Synthetic Silk. Dry clean only. JB Designs.' '_So, she got me a fireproof, bulletproof dress_,' Kim thought to herself as she read it. The three-inch heels were also very simple, until one took the time to investigate them, or even after investigation. There was a tag on the heels as well, which was attached to a small booklet; the booklet read 'JB Designs – Concealment and Protection Heels. Heels are detachable with a ¾ counter-clockwise rotation and provide a small space for hiding valuables such as cash. Pair with JB Designs Miniature Lock Picks for the ultimate in concealable B&E. Inch-long blades are hidden in the arch; remove and hold between middle and ring fingers for easy self-defense.' Kim didn't know what to think about the heels, or any possible reason Shego would think she'd need those things. The hair tie, however, was just that; a ruby and emerald-encrusted hair tie.

"Shego," Kim shouted through the door again, "I don't want to sound ungrateful for this, but…"

Anticipating Kim's question again, she replied, "How much do I have if I can spend this much on a day's notice? Twenty-three million in total, give or take." She sighed and walked into the kitchen. She picked up her cell phone and placed a call. "Yes, hello, this is April Hargrove. I'd like to confirm the availability of my usual table for my booking at eight o'clock tonight. Yes, I'll hold," she finished with a note of exasperation. She drummed her fingernails on the counter for a solid minute. "Yes, I'm still here. It is? Fine, we'll be there a little late then, just please hurry." She snapped her phone shut and rubbed her brow. "Eight hours," she said to herself. "I gave them eight hours notice that I'd be there, and they give someone else my table." Curious as to how Kim was coming along, she walked into her room. Kim was standing in the middle of the room, admiring herself in the mirror. Lost in her dreams, she was oblivious to Shego; Kim had donned her dress and the hair tie, but not yet her heels. Shego chuckled, and Kim spun around in automatic response, assuming a defensive posture until she saw Shego smiling at her. Kim's reaction made Shego's to smile even wider. "You're so cute when you get defensive," she said.

Kim held her defensive attitude, more out of confusion than anything else. "How did you know my size?" she asked. "It's obviously all hand-made, and it's not exactly standard for tailors to make clothing with a blend of Cashmere and synthetic silk. Expecting a firefight? And what about these shoes? They've got knives and lock picks in them!"

"First, I guessed on your size," she said. "Second, if you haven't noticed, we're on the second floor of the building; the first floor of this complex holds many specialty shops, like spy equipment and high-end tailors. Third, it's the only material he had in black, but you'll be damn glad to be wearing that if something does happen. It's thin and light, but it's as strong as police-issue body armor and completely fire-resistant; well, except for the Cashmere. Forth, those were the only shoes in your size in the entire shopping complex."

Kim stared at her for a second and burst into laughter. After a while, Shego stopped looking amused. "Wait," she began, "you're serious?"

"Yes, Princess," Shego replied, almost sounding hurt.

"Alright, I'll finish getting ready, but you should probably put on something, unless you plan on going out naked," Kim replied. "Not that I would mind."

"Just let me do all the talking, 'k?" Shego said, more a command than a question.

* * *

At The Club…

"Good evening, ma'am," the bouncer said as Shego and Kim walked up to the club. They stopped in front of the man, who was holding the proverbial velvet rope.

"Good evening, Rick," Shego said. "How's the career?"

"Well, I haven't been seriously injured since the last time you were here, if that's what you mean," he said.

"I'll try to keep myself under control," she promised. Rick nodded and lifted the rope for them.

"Hey!" screamed the guy at the front of the line. "I've been waiting here for two hours, and you just let her in?" Shego spun around and threw a ball of fire at his feet, which scorched the pavement but nothing more. The man gulped nervously and said, "I'll wait."

Shego turned back around and escorted Kim into the club. It was lavishly elegant; if such a thing can exist, then it did there. The vast majority of the building was made of a rich, dark wood. The lighting fixtures were all dark, silvery chandeliers, which hung over each table, and were lit with candles. In the back, a band was setting up; trumpets and a trombone lined the back, a drum set was on one side, accompanied by various hand drums, a piano was on the other, accompanied by a harp, and a microphone and guitar took center stage.

A waiter walked over to them, bowed, and said, "It is a pleasure to see you tonight, ma'am. Your table is, unfortunately, still unavailable; we can seat you at another, if you'd like, or perhaps you would prefer to dance before your meal? The band is just now setting up."

Shego looked at Kim, smiled, and said, "I think we'll take in the band." She turned back to the waiter. "Who's playing tonight?"

"Pink Martini," he replied. "An excellent band covering styles from classical to jazz to early pop. I've been assured that their openers tonight are both excellent for a young couple such as you to dance to. The first is by the name of 'City of Night'."

"Excellent, thank you," Shego said. The waiter bowed slightly and walked off. Shego led Kim down to the dance floor as the woman at the microphone began to sing.

Well the sun's going down  
With its deep umber light  
Embracing the town  
As we fall into night  
To the silvery sound  
As the birds fly away  
Getting ready for love  
Getting out of the day

It is the city of night  
It is the city of night  
Leave the worries of day behind  
And dream a new dream tonight

All the lands are a glow  
All the lids painted red  
And you wish you could take  
Back the last thing you said  
Well the night is a drum  
Singing songs of delight  
But when dawn comes along  
Love is lost in the light

But in the city of night  
Oh, in the city of night  
Leave the troubles of day behind  
And dream a new dream tonight

But in the city of night  
Oh, in the city of night  
Leave the troubles of day behind  
And dream a new dream tonight

But in the city of night  
Oh, in the city of night  
You can leave it all far behind  
And dream a new dream tonight

As the song ended, they moved immediately into their next selection. Shego, recognizing the song, pulled Kim in close and sang along quietly.

I wish a falling star could fall forever  
And sparkle through the clouds and stormy weather  
And in the darkness of the night  
The star would shine a glimmering light  
And hover above our love

Please hold me close and whisper that you love me  
And promise that your dreams are only of me  
When you are near, everything's clear  
Earth is a beautiful heaven  
Always I hope that we follow the star  
And be forever floating above  
I know a falling star can't fall forever  
But let's never stop falling in love

When you are near, everything's clear  
Earth is a beautiful heaven  
Always I hope that we shine like the star  
And be forever floating above  
I know a falling star can't fall forever  
But let's never stop falling in love

No, let's never stop falling in love

The song ended, and the waiter came down and whispered to Shego. She nodded and led Kim to the table. At the table was sitting a man; he was tall, relatively speaking, with short brown hair and a very simple appearance. Dressed in an average business suit, as he was, he could be mistaken for any of a million business men walking the streets of any major city, or for any other patron of the upscale establishment in which they found themselves.

"Jacques Lu Cont, it is my pleasure to introduce to you Kimberly Possible. Kimberly, may I introduce to you Jacques Lu Cont, the man with his hand on the pulse of everything in the gray area between the worlds of heroes and villains," Shego said as she introduced the two.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, my dear," he said, kissing Kim's hand.

"I'm honoured," Kim replied with sincerity.

"Well, from the looks of it, miss," Jacques began, "you'd enjoy a bit of private time with your… Lover, is it? No, you hold the flame, but the way she looks at you…" He laughed under his breath. "You," he pointed to Shego, "there's something far more than that going on in your beautiful mind."

"That," snapped Shego, taking a second to calm her voice, "is quite an observation. Jacques," she handed him a small envelope, "payment in full, along with instructions. Now, if you don't mind, _I'd_ like some with my girlfriend." Jacques nodded and walked away from the table.

"Ok," began Kim as he walked away, "tell me everything."

Shego, very methodically, grabbed her glass took a drink of her wine. Without putting it down, she said, "What's the last thing you remember?"

Kim closed her eyes. "I remember getting up, and talking to you in the kitchen, and then going back to bed, and you having a drink, and then I fell asleep." Kim reopened her eyes to a deviously-smiling Shego. "Spill."

Shego took another sip of her wine. "Right on all counts up to the last one, Pumpkin. After I brought you back to bed, I pulled out that bottle of Scotch I'd started on the night before. I poured myself a glass, and I offered you one as well. After a bit of coaxing, you agreed to drink one shot." Shego paused.

"And?" asked Kim, anticipating more of a response.

"And… You have no tolerance to alcohol. You kept giggling, and took another shot, and then another, and ended up saying that you were hot, so you took off your shirt, and then decided that if you're not wearing a shirt, why should you wear anything?" Shego said, finishing the rest of her glass in one gulp. She poured herself another, but Kim snatched it and drank it down before she could stop her. "Kim!"

"Just one," Kim said, a pleading look in her eyes, but a grin preventing the infamous puppy-dog pout. Shego sighed. "Thank you. But what about you; why were you naked?"

"Because I like sleeping naked," Shego replied matter-of-factly. "Now I want you to answer one question for me. Can you… Will you do that for me, Princess?" Shego asked. Kim nodded. "How much of this is a game to you?"

Kim swallowed and laughed under her breath. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry," she said. She cleared her throat and continued with an unsuccessful attempt at looking serious. "I love you, Shego, and when we get home, I'll show you just how much I love you."

Shego shook her head. "No, Kimmie," she said. She sighed a meaningful sigh, not one of exasperation, but one of honest sadness. "I can't speak to what's going on in your head, but when I look at you, when I look in your eyes, I see staring back at me a girl who is wild and impulsive. Part of me wants to blame the bastards who captured you, but deep down I know that you've always been this way, and your ability to focus in school and on your missions is simply part of that wild nature." She leaned in close, a definite and disappointed sadness in her eyes. "You're the most clever person I've ever met, and you're strong, and fast, and agile, and everything good and virtuous, but nobody, _nobody_, gets away without their fair demons. You are stubborn; when you are challenged, you don't give up for anything." She paused and considered her next words carefully. "You save the world because it's the right thing to do, but you'd go off your rocker if the world didn't need saving anymore."

"So you don't…" Kim started as she looked timidly into Shego's eyes.

"No, Kimmie, I don't want to have sex with you. I love you, and I will always love you. When you decide that you love me too, not just teenage hormones flaring up lust for the admittedly gorgeous girl who just came to your rescue, then, and only then, will I consider it," Shego said gently.

The two finished their meal without much more conversation, both speaking more with their body language than anything their words could convey.

* * *

Back at Shego's Apartment…

The slightly-inebriated Kim stood outside the door to Shego's apartment, holding her heels in her hand and tapping her foot as her counterpart strolled down the hall toward her silently. "Come on," she said with a touch of whine in her voice, "you've got the key! Hurry up; I've got to use the little girls' room!"

Shego smiled and said, "You've got those lock picks, remember?"

Kim's eyes widened. "But that's illegal!"

"It's only illegal if you're breaking into something which you don't have permission to break into. I'm giving you permission to break into my house," she replied.

A giant, enthusiastic grin burst onto Kim's face, like a child who has walked into the living room on Christmas morning and has sees the giant, wrapped box which could only be one thing. She removed the miniature lock pick set from her heels, and looked at them for a minute before remembering what she'd seen on television. She placed the torsion wrench into the lock, followed by the actual pick, and began moving the pick up and down and in and out, trying to figure out what she was doing. Shego walked up behind her and placed her hands on Kim's, moving the pick and, eventually, turning the torsion wrench, unlocking the door. Kim looked back at her, half disappointed, half drunk. "I would have got it eventually," she said.

"No, sweetie, you wouldn't have. But I'll tell you what: Starting tomorrow, I'll teach you all sorts of tricks like how to pick locks. If you're lucky, maybe I'll even teach you how to be silent," Shego said. The grin appeared on Kim's face again as Shego finished speaking, and she opened the door and pulled the other woman inside. Shego smiled as well, like a parent who has just seen the look on their daughter's face when they see the big present which could only be one thing on Christmas morning. "Let's get you to bed."

* * *

The Next Morning…

Kim turned over as she woke up, half asleep, and much to her dismay, Shego wasn't in bed. She looked at the clock on the nightstand, which flashed 12:00. Kim growled under her breath, and stood up. She looked herself over, and she was still wearing her dress, but her hair had been let down. She stumbled out the open bedroom door and called out, "Shego?"

No reply. Kim wandered through the small apartment, and, finding no sign that the woman had ever been there, sat herself down on the couch. Her expression was half worry, half irritation; she wondered where Shego had gone, and why there wasn't even so much as a black hair in the entire house. The front door opened. Kim jumped up and turned around to see Shego. Shego shot her between the eyes, and she watched herself fall to the floor.

Kim threw her arms around the sleeping Shego and wailed tears of fear and sadness. "Shhh," said Shego as she awoke, embracing Kim, "I'm here, love, don't worry." The look on the younger woman's face made Shego cringe; Kim looked as though someone had just died in her arms. "What did you see?"

Kim whimpered in the Shego's arms for a few more minutes before replying. "You weren't in bed when I woke up, and I couldn't find any sign that you'd ever been in here, so I sat down on the couch, and then you came in and…" Kim tried to keep herself from breaking into tears again, but failed. "You killed me."

Shego couldn't take it anymore. Every inch of her body felt as though it was burning with a mix of unspeakable sadness and unparalleled rage. She pulled Kim as close as she could and held on for dear life. "There is not a soul on this earth foolish enough to try to take you away from me."

* * *

Author's Notes

Well, here's the rehash of Chapter 1, revised many, many times since the last update. If you haven't guessed it yet, my writing is a living thing, evolving as I do, as an author and as a person. Every other chapter also has its own respective revisions, so you might want to check them out.

In the immortal words of Leonard Nimoy: LLAP.


	2. Chapter Two: Back Story Mambo

Chapter Two: Back Story Mambo

There is no greater epitaph,  
In this world, at least,  
Than simply,  
'He done his best.'

Kim and Ron: At Kim's House…

Kim's jaw dropped as she read the letter Ron had handed her. "Dear Mr. Stoppable," she read, "In light of your continued service with Kimberly Possible, and your previous history working with Global Justice, we hereby offer you admission to the Global Justice Agent Training Program. Detailed below are the mutual expectations. The formal induction ceremony will be on June 15th at 8:00 PM."

"Boo-yah!" Ron shouted. "Score one for the Ron man!"

"Ron, that's tonight," Kim said, still in a state of shock. He opened the box he'd placed on the table when he came in, and pulled out a tuxedo. "I'll… go get ready."

Ron sat in the living room watching wrestling with the tweebs while Kim got ready. "KP!" Ron shouted, drawing out her name for the sake of urgency, "we're going to be laaate!"

"Oh, keep your pants on," said Kim as she started down the stairs. Her red hair was drawn back into a ponytail, and she wore matching red earrings. She had on a long, elegantly-designed mid-shin-length black dress with equally-elegant three-inch heels. Ron stood there with his mouth hanging open until Mr. Dr. Possible walked over and shut it, promptly returning to the kitchen to finish whatever he'd been up to. "What?" Kim asked. Ron, dressed smartly in a proper black suit and with a proper hairdo, could only manage to open his mouth again. Kim rolled her eyes and walked down the stairs, closing his mouth and dragging him with her. "We're off," she said.

"Enjoy the ceremony," shouted the Drs. Possible.

"We will," Kim replied as she stepped out the door. She and Ron stepped into the Sloth and drove off.

A few minutes later, they arrived at the community center, stepped out, and handed the Sloth off to the valet. The crowd cheered wildly; Kim blushed a little and Ron started waving enthusiastically. They walked into the building and took their seats in the front row. Slowly people started filling in around them. The front few rows were filled with a veritable who's who of the important and heroic; Special Agent Will Du and other Global Justice agents comprised the bulk of the second row while the more recognition-giving people, such as the mayor, the police chief, and the governor, were seated in the front row. There were also a few people whom Kim did not recognize, but she brushed off her interest in their identities. She turned to Ron, who was playing a hand-held video game with one hand, smiled, and took his free hand. He looked up and smiled back at her before turning his focus back to the game.

Out of the corner of her eye, Kim saw a woman dressed entirely in black, with a veil over her face. The veil covered everything from her nose down, and a hood covered everything from the tops of her eyes up. She wore a long black robe with gold embroidery which hid her feet, and black gloves to cover her hands. Kim turned further to get a better look, but there wasn't much else to see. The only parts of her body which weren't hidden were her eyes and the top of her nose. There was something about what little of her she could see; her skin was a dark, olive green, and her eyes were almost as dark of a green as her own. They eyes were fixed on some point on the stage, oblivious to all else.

The more Kim stared, the deeper her gaze fell into the eyes of the other woman. She was called back to the events around her when she heard someone walk onto the stage. She turned back in time to see Dr. Director take the podium and adjust the microphone to the proper height. She thumped it a few times to make sure it was on and at the right levels. "Good evening, ladies and gentlemen," she began, "tonight we are here to commemorate continued service of several Global Justice agents and the promotion of Special Agent Will Du, as well as the acceptance of our newest recruits into the Global Justice Agent Training Program."

The rest of the evening went off without a hitch. All of the Global Justice agents in the second row were commemorated with plaques of five, ten, and fifteen years of 'service toward the greater good and global order.' The peak of the event was Special Agent Du's promotion from command of Global Justice's field division. "It is with tepid regret and great enthusiasm which I make this next announcement. As of now, Special Agent Will Du is officially the director of Global Justice's new division, the Strategic Initiative for the Protection of the Homeworld. I have created StIPH in light of attack from off-world. We can no longer afford to live under the belief that we are alone in the universe, or that those in the universe will come with peaceful intentions. I would like to take this time to invite Director Du to speak, if he should choose."

Newly-appointed Director Will Du stood, smoothed out his clothes, and walked up to the stage. He shook Dr. Director's hand firmly and walked up to the microphone. "It is my great honour to personally oversee the continued safety of our planet from outside forces. In the coming weeks, I will be recruiting our world's greatest minds in the fields of energy shielding, space travel, and weaponized lasers and plasma projectiles. I have already recruited such experts as Dr. James Possible and Wade Load, and I will be taking resumes starting at the end of this meeting. Thank you." He walked off the stage.

Kim was shocked. She'd heard nothing from Wade about the position, much less her father. '_What does this mean for Team Possible? Wait, my dad?_' she thought. Her thoughts were interrupted by Dr. Director returning to her speech.

"Among the many new recruits to the Global Justice team, I would like to formally announce the acceptance of Ron Stoppable into the Global Justice Agent Training Program," she said. "Over the years, he has served as Kim Possible's sidekick, and in that time he has proven himself inexhaustibly invaluable and resourceful. Mr. Stoppable, would you care to say a few words?"

Ron stood up and climbed onto the stage. Very maturely, he adjusted the microphone and took a moment to clear his thoughts. "Thank you, ma'am," he began. "I would simply like to take this time to say," he cleared his throat, "A-BOO-YAH!" He threw up his hands and jumped off the stage.

Kim blushed, buried her face in her hands, and groaned. The crowd gasped, and she looked up; Ron was climbing over the mayors of both Go City and Middleton, several members of Global Justice, including Director Will Du, and one very confused foreign dignitary. "Crowd surfing is not acceptable at formal events, Mr. Possible!" Director Du shouted.

Kim walked over, pulled him out of the mess, and dragged him out of the building.

* * *

Shego and Dr. D.: At The Lair…

"You're WHAT?" shouted Shego.

"I'm taking a vacation, for exactly three months," he replied as he put his feet up on the console of one of his super-computers. He sat there, leaning back in his office chair, wearing denim shorts and a bad knockoff of a Hawaiian shirt. In his hand he held a very cheap Tiki mug with some combination of ingredients which Shego didn't even want to consider, and on the screen was a video of some tropical beach.

Shego rubbed her head, and said, hand over her brow, "THIS _isn't_ a vacation. This is you sitting in front of a stupid movie-"

He cut her off. "This is a live feed from the Caribbean, Shego," he said.

"IT'S A VIDEO! If you wanted to go to the Caribbean, why not go? We've got the hovercraft, we've got the money-" Shego said before she was cut off again.

"But… it's so… hot…" he replied meekly. Petals popped up around his neck and he promptly ripped them out.

She stared at him blankly. "Fine, whatever; _I'm_ going to go pack, and take _my_ hovercraft down and visit the Caribbean on _my_ vacation time. If _you_ want to come with me, you're welcome to." She walked out of the room.

He thought for a second, and jumped out of his seat, calling out as he ran after her and ripped out the petals which had grown the second he stood up, "I'll warm up the hovercraft!"

* * *

Shego and Dr. D: Flying Via Hovercraft…

"Shego!" whined Dr. Drakken, "How much longer until we get there?"

"Ugh," groaned Shego as she turned a page in her magazine. She was lying on one of the benches, head propped against the wall, legs hanging over the side. Instead of her usual green and black skintight suit, she wore a loose-fitting green t-shirt and a pair of tight black shorts. "Tell me how fast we're going." Dr. Drakken looked over the instruments for a second and scratched his head. "It's the big screen which says 'Speed' on it. I want you to read me the number on it taking the most space."

"Ah! It says eighty," he said, mildly proud of himself. As if in reply, the petals returned, and he tore them out in frustration. A vine crept out from his sleeve and pointed at his face, as if to look at him. "I'm an evil mad scientist, Planty; nobody will take me seriously if I have petals around my neck." The end of the vine bent down, as if a head tipping in disappointment. It slipped back into his sleeve. Dr. Drakken frowned. The petals returned.

"Done talking to your plants?" Shego asked without looking up from her magazine.

"How long?" he asked.

"Ten minutes until we land, give or take," Shego replied. She sat up and ran her hands through her hair, making it passable for a vacationing woman of her age.

"So," began Dr. Drakken, "is this thing going to land itself at our hotel or are you going to have to land it?"

"It's going to land itself," she replied, "but it's not landing at our hotel. We're landing at the Trinidad Visitor's Center so we can get our passports stamped." Drakken looked at her, clearly shocked. "Relax, Blue, _neither_ of us are wanted here, and I'd like to _keep it_ that way."

Drakken slumped down into a seat.

* * *

Joanne and Dr. Director: Day One of Internship…

"Joanne Woodward, reporting for duty," said the woman who found herself standing at attention in front of Dr. Director. She was average in most ways; twenty-two years old, five-foot-nine, one-hundred forty-five pounds, fair complexion, light-brown hair, and blue eyes. She wore a proper business suit with short heels, looking more like an accountant or a lawyer than an in-training field agent.

Dr. Director smiled as she sat behind her paper-strewn desk. '_They never change,_' she thought to herself. "You know, I was in your position once." She stood up and walked over to the young woman in front of her. "Relax, this is personal; you're not here for 'duty' just yet."

Joanne relaxed a bit, but only enough that she could still look formal. Dr. Director gave her a skeptical look and motioned toward a chair in front of her desk, at which point Joanne sighed and dropped into it. "I need to work on the formal thing, don't I?" she asked.

Dr. Director laughed and returned to her seat, pushing papers aside enough to reveal the desk itself. "To the point, I like that," she said. "I asked you to be here because as much as I may hate to admit it, I can't be the director of Global Justice forever. I need a replacement, and you're the best agent I've seen yet."

Joanne mulled the idea over in her head for a second. "What about Kim Possible or Ron Stoppable?" she asked.

"Kim Possible has refused to join Global Justice, and Ron Stoppable lacks the mental attributes," Dr. Director said. "I'm thirty-five years old, and I'm not getting any younger. I give myself five years before I won't be able to keep up with my agents. The director of Global Justice has to be capable of field work as well as administration, which makes you the perfect choice."

"With all due respect, ma'am-" Joanne began, before being cut off.

"Please, Betty," Dr. Director replied.

"Betty, I'm really not sure what led you to this conclusion. You've seen my record; I'm good, but I'm far from the best in either logistics or legal, and certainly from the physical aspect," Joanne said hesitantly.

"True, you're not the most naturally-gifted," Dr. Director said, weaving her fingers and putting her elbows on her desk, "but you have two things which most others lack. First, the director doesn't need to be the best; if the director was the best, they'd be in another field. The director needs to be good across the board, which you are."

"And the second?" Joanne asked.

"You need a certain moral flexibility," she replied. "You need to be able to make the hard decisions for the greater good, but you also need to know when the price is too high. Global Justice is different from any other peacekeeping organization in that we are willing negotiate. Unlike law-enforcement agencies around the world, who deal with bank robbers as their hostage situations, we deal with mad scientists who are threatening entire countries. Those stakes are too high to risk."

* * *

Ron and Dr. Director: Day Three of Internship…

"Have a seat, Mr. Stoppable," Dr. Director said as Ron walked into her office. "Ron, you know Joanne."

"Hello, Ronald," Joanne said with a smile.

"Hey Jo, Betty D.," he said as he dropped into the empty chair.

"Mr. Stoppable!" snapped Dr. Director as she rubbed her brow. She withheld her irritation as she spoke again. "Please, a little professionalism is expected."

"Sorry, ma'am," he replied.

"Ms. Woodward, the file," Dr. Director said. Joanne handed her one of the files she was holding on her lap. Dr. Director opened it and pushed it in front of Ron. "This is your first official mission as a Global Justice agent. You and Ms. Woodward will accompany one of our senior agents to evaluate the new mental illness regression program being developed by Origa Industries. The president and CEO is a man by the name of Yvarra Motoko Origa, who claims that he has found a way to aid in the rehabilitation of the mentally unstable. More specifically, he claims to have found a form of therapy which promises to help with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder by allowing the subject to replace his or her triggers with ones they are less likely to encounter. If it works, I don't need to tell you how valuable it will be to the world."

"You can count on us, ma'am," Joanne said as she stood. "If there is anything to this, we will be sure that it is used to serve the greater good."

* * *

Kim: Day Three of Ron's Internship…

Kim sat on her bed, staring at her Kimmunicator. It didn't beep; it hadn't beeped since the graduation fiasco, and there was no sign that it would start any time soon. Wade had gone to the Global Justice training center the day after the award ceremony, and her father had left the day after that. Her mother was at a conference for the next few days, and had left Kim with the family bank card, in case of emergencies like running out of food, or Ron stopping by.

She picked up the Kimmunicator and tossed it across the room, landing it on a pile of her mission clothes. "Ugh!" she moaned, falling backward. She pulled out her cell phone and thought for a moment, unsure whether or not she really wanted to go through with her plan. She closed it, opened it again, and dialed a number, letting it ring for a while.

"Hello, you've reached the answering machine of Drew Theodore QUIET SHEGO, I'M RECORDING MY ANSWERING MACHINE MESSAGE! Ahem, Drew Theodore P. Lipsky. I'm currently out of town, on vacation in the Caribbean, and I'll get back to you when I return. Please leave a message after the beep. Beep!" the answering machine said, followed by the machine's beep.

'_He does know that they beep on their own, right?_' she thought to herself. She hung up and dialed another number, again letting it ring.

"Zis is za answering machine of Professor Dementor; leave a message at ze beep," came the unmistakable German voice.

Kim snapped the phone shut and threw it at her mission gear. It thudded lamely on the floor a foot shy of its destination. Kim pulled a pillow over her face and screamed into it.

"I'm so bored!" she shouted to no one. The doorbell chimed, and she rushed down to answer the door.

"Kimberly Possible?" asked a man in a government-issue black suit.

"Yeah," she said, instinctively wary of the man.

He nodded to the car parked on the street, also government-issue black. The rear window rolled down and there was a quiet pop. Kim looked down; there was a dart sticking out of her chest. She ripped the dart out of her body and ran into the house, slamming the door and locking it. She darted up to her room, stumbling as she began to feel the effects of the drugs which had been shot into her. She climbed into her room and grabbed her hairdryer grappling hook. Unsure what to do next, she kicked open her bedroom window, shot the hook into the tree, and jumped out. Rather than lowering her safely, the hook fell out of the tree, and she plummeted to the ground, landing on her back. Everything went black.

* * *

Ron and Joanne: Later On in the Day of 'Day Three of Internship'…

"Agents Stoppable and Woodward, we've arrived at Origa Industries. We're beginning our descent now," Agent Oleander said. He was short, and rather portly; not the vision one would have of an agent of an elite peacekeeping organization. He landed the Global Justice helicopter on the roof of the twenty-story building, and the three jumped out.

"Welcome, Global Justice," shouted a man next to an elevator. He was tall and wore an expensive business suit, and spoke with a thick Australian accent. "My name is Sid Boreal; I'm the head of the mental rehabilitation department. Mr. Origa regrets being unable to direct you personally, but he's been caught up in other business."

"Quite alright," Agent Oleander shouted as they walked toward the man. "We understand that the heads of organizations aren't able to personally give tours. If our director had to do that, we'd never get anything done."

"I like the attitude; good on ya, mate!" he shouted, more out of enthusiasm than need, as he opened the elevator for the guests. "Floor fifteen," he said after the doors closed; the elevator beeped and began to descend. "So, Agent Woodward, holding much hope for the program?"

Joanne turned to look at him. "How did you know my name?" she asked.

"Your director told me," Sid replied.

"No, she didn't," Joanne said. "I was there when she made the call."

Sid rubbed his eyes. "Well, fuck," he said. He pulled a silenced pistol from his jacket pocket and shot Agent Oleander in the back of the head, the round exiting through his left eye. He fell forward, against the wall, his corpse sliding to the floor with a trail of blood streaking behind.

Ron lunged for the gun, but Sid turned it on him. He quickly backed away. "Bad move," Ron said.

Sid cracked him on the neck with the butt of the gun, doing the same to a shocked Joanne. He pulled a radio from his pocket and said, "We've got them."

A voice squawked through the radio, "Kimberly Possible is en route to the facility, ETA five minutes."

* * *

Black Suit: Later That Day…

"Well," Sid said, tossing Black Suit a beer from the fridge of the break room of the Origa International facility, "I didn't expect the CIA to actually deliver an American citizen to a Canadian company, but you delivered." He laughed at the joke.

"The Agency is not fond of Global Justice," Black Suit replied, setting his beer on the table. "They get in our way on a regular basis, and have routinely interfered in our attempts to interrogate detainees in extralegal facilities." Sid nodded his head knowingly, though doing a poor job to hide his ignorance on the subject. "Forgoing comment on your obvious lack of understanding, I will say only that with Kim Possible out of the picture, we will be able to properly _deal_ with the series of so-called super-villains; some of their ideas could be quite promising if applied to an American government set of resources." He stood, walked to the door, and faced Sid. "If there is nothing else absolutely pressing, I am a busy man."

"Different kind of pressing," Sid began, "but how do you suits never get your suits wrinkled?"

"We are the government," Black Suit replied, walking out. His phone rang, and he answered it, saying, "Go."

"Mr. Blue?" the voice asked over the phone.

"I haven't been Mr. Blue in a decade," Black Suit replied.

"You never stop being Mr. Blue," the voice said. "You just brought Kim Possible to Origa International, correct?"

"Correct," Black Suit replied.

"You know that Global Justice is going to bring Ms. Green in to find her, correct?" the voice asked.

"Correct," Black Suit replied again. "Ms. Green is not going to be a problem. Origa International has assured me that the process will be complete before Ms. Green has time to extract Ms. Possible."

"Good," the voice said, "the Agency would hate to lose a possible asset like Ms. Possible."

"Ma'am, everything has already been taken care of," Black Suit said.

* * *

Author's Notes

TTFN


	3. Chapter Three: Improbable Compassion…

Chapter Three: Improbable Compassion…

All our demons,  
Those parts of our past we would forget,  
Our embarrassments, our insecurities,  
Make us who we are,  
And we must never forget that.

In Shego's Apartment…

Kim cocked her head sideways as Shego entered the room with a beer and a digital tablet. "And presently I was driving through the drizzle of the dying day, with the windshield wipers in full action but unable to cope with my tears," she said reading aloud from her book.

"My car is limping, Dolores Haze, and the last long lap is the hardest, and I shall be dumped where the weed decays," replied Shego, dropping down on the couch next to Kim's feet, "and all the rest is rust and stardust." She started drinking her beer as she read her tablet. "Those are the only decent lines of the whole damn story."

"You have an iPad?" said Kim, putting her book aside for a moment.

"It's not an iPad, it's a media tablet. I snagged a dozen of them from a HenchDepot sale about a month ago," Shego replied without looking up.

"It says iPad on the back," said Kim as she took it from Shego's hand and showed her the back.

"Ok, so it is an iPad. You think that Apple products are their own ideas? They're just the publicly-marketable division of HenchDepot's electronics section. Well, them and Radio Shack," Shego retorted, taking her iPad back.

"So you're telling me that both Apple and Radio Shack are just part of HenchCo?" asked Kim, sitting up and snuggling up close to Shego.

"Radio Shack is the kid's section," replied Shego. She put her arm around Kim's shoulders and took another drink from her beer.

"We should go out and do something exciting!" Kim said enthusiastically.

"No," Shego said sternly. She sighed, and said, "I'll tell you what… I got a message on my cell phone from an old acquaintance about some his things being stolen, and he wants me to get them back. I wasn't going to take it, but I think it would be good for you to get into the game again. Just don't do anything reckless, alright?"

* * *

That Night, in a Field in Germany…

Shego stepped out of her jet onto the landing pad. The scenery was rather unusual for a helicopter landing pad; she found herself standing in the middle of a field, well-kept but clearly natural, with a forest off a hundred yards in one direction and a large house two hundred in another. Kim climbed out behind her, and marveled at the scene; the dark night sky was completely clear, and despite being the middle of summer, the cool breeze and mild temperatures spoke more to the end of a warm spring day than anything else, much less the height of summer.

"Ok, we're here, what's the sitch?" Kim asked.

"Nothing major," Shego replied. "Baron Wilhelm von Neumann is a rich old man who was once a world-renowned thief. A tip came out that he was in possession of two stolen violins." She started walking toward the mansion, and Kim followed close behind.

"So?" Kim said, "Can't the cops handle this?"

"They're Stradivarius', and we've been offered a very good price to get one back," Shego said, "and there's a chance that the cops would get overzealous and damage them."

"You accepted payment for helping someone?" Kim asked, stopping.

Shego turned and looked at her. "No, _you_ accepted payment, by proxy," she said. Kim looked at her disapprovingly. "Oh, don't pretend like you don't ever accept payment. All those favors everyone owes you, what did you think that was? Yeah, it's not monetary, but it's still them doing something to benefit you because you did something to benefit them." She continued walking toward the house.

Kim caught up to her and said, "Why couldn't we just get favors from them, then?"

"Because," began Shego, "people like that can't offer favors to people like you and me. We're dealing with people who have nothing useful to either of us except money, of which they have _a lot_, and are willing to give us _a lot_. We're going to do this quietly, so follow my lead."

Shego climbed over the stone wall which separated the house from the surrounding countryside; it wasn't particularly impressive, only about eight feet tall and made of easily-climbable stones. Kim followed, and the two jumped down into the inner yard. They made their way to a steel latticework covered in grapevines, and ascended to the roof. Shego inspected the area; there were a number of skylights, one of which was designed for easy roof access to the first floor. Shego motioned for Kim to follow as she dropped a rope down and climbed in. Inside, they found themselves in the kitchen; marble counter tops, brushed stainless steel appliances, two large sinks, the works.

Shego led Kim down a hallway to a conservatory. The room was enormous, and the wall on the left was covered in the mural of a family tree, dating back centuries. The walls at the end and to the right were made of glass, similar to stained glass in the shapes of flowers only that the glass itself was completely clear. The ceiling, too, was made of glass, properly stained this time, in the figure of a family portrait; father, mother, four sons, and a daughter. Along the bases of the glass walls grew vines of ivy which had the appearance of being allowed to grow while being trimmed so as to keep the windows functional.

The floor of the conservatory was made of bricks, with a large and very expensive-looking Persian rug in the middle. In the center of the rug stood a piano, a few music stands, and a table with two antique violin cases. Kim pointed at them, and Shego nodded. They slowly went over, careful not to make any noise, and with the precision of a surgeon removed one of the cases from their resting place upon the table. Shego smiled for a moment as she caressed the case in her hands, which was older and in notably worse condition than its counterpart, before walking out of the room.

As Kim and Shego reentered the kitchen, Shego spun around and knocked Kim's legs out from under her. A kitchen knife flew past, sticking into the wall. A flurry of knives followed, Shego only barely managing to dodge them as she danced about the kitchen, jumping from the floor to the island to the counters. She ducked down and held the cases in front of her body; the would-be assassin cleared his throat.

"You know I can't let you have those," said the shadow-veiled man.

"Why not, it's not like they're yours," she replied, keeping the cases in front of her body.

The man stepped forward. He was a short, elder-looking gentleman, with pale skin and a clean-shaven face, his gray hair slicked neatly back. He wore a red robe and matching slippers over lavender pajamas. He stepped over to Kim and easily hoisted her onto her feet. "I hope my easily-excitable daughter didn't harm you," he said. Kim stared first at the strange old man, and then at Shego, who had a look of malcontent upon her face, and then back over to the self-pronounced father. "Oh, she didn't tell you, did she?"

"No, I didn't tell her," Shego said, setting the cases down on the counter and walking over to the two, snatching Kim from his arms. "Kim, you weren't supposed to know that my father was a thief."

"World-renown art and antiquities thief," he interjected.

"Cat burglar," Shego said, glaring at him. The look on his face turned from amusement to mock pain. "Oh, don't give me that."

"Apple and tree, my dear girl, apple and tree," he said.

Kim, still reeling from the situation, sputtered out, "What's going on?"

"Be sensible," he said, taking Kim by the arms once again and walking her over to the kitchen table, seating her. "Coffee, dear?" he asked. Kim nodded, half entranced. He went over to the coffee pot, which was just finishing its brew cycle, and poured her a mug. He handed it to her and took a seat himself. "I bet you'd like to know the story behind those violins."

Kim sipped the hot elixir as Shego took her seat at the table. "For that matter," Shego said, "so would I."

"You wouldn't think it by looking at me," he began with a sideways glance toward Kim, "but I am actually rather old." A joking smile crept across his lips. "I'm seventy-eight years old, and I stole the first of the two, Lamoureux, when I was sixteen. I didn't do it on purpose, though; at the time I was making my living playing fiddle on the street corner, and my violin had been stolen by an unscrupulous luthier while it was being repaired. Not knowing what to do, and having no family in the United States, I resolved myself to steal it back. I broke into the building in the middle of the night through the broken back door and grabbed my violin case, and the violin inside of it. It wasn't until the next morning when I inspected it that I realized that while I had grabbed my case, I had stolen another violin. I took it to a gypsy friend of mine and she told me what I had."

"And so you became a thief," Shego scoffed. "What about the Ames?"

"That one I got for you," he said. She looked at him with a certain level of surprise. "I stole it in 1984, the week before you were born, but for what I can only assume to be insurance reasons it was reported as being stolen in 1981. I'd love to know how he managed that, the old bastard."

"You stole a Stradivarius for me?" Shego asked. "Well, I'm honored. So can I have it?"

"What will I tell your mother when she comes for it?" he asked.

"Tell her that they were stolen," Shego said, standing up. "I'm not leaving without these."

"Fine, take them, I'll get a couple replicas made," he said, standing and helping the still rather shocked Kim to her feet and over to the climbing rope. "Your mother was always a little tone-deaf."

"Well, it was a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Go," Kim said, still dazed.

"Mr. Go? She hasn't even told you my real name?" he inquired. "My name is Edgar Hargrove, and her name is April; April Elizabeth Hargrove. Shego is just the name her brother gave her after that little comet incident." Shego tugged on the rope and it came loose, falling to the ground around them; she quickly coiled it up and threw it over her shoulder. She led Kim to the front door, her father following closely behind. She opened the door and stepped out without a word. "Stay safe, April!" he shouted after her.

* * *

Minutes Later, In the Jet…

Kim climbed aboard, and Shego after her, who promptly huffed into the cockpit and began to fly the Go Jet back home. Kim walked in, and Shego glared at her; she backed off and strapped herself into her seat. After a few minutes, Shego walked back and laid herself onto the floor. Kim unbuckled and lay down on her side next to her, head on Shego's chest, arm wrapped over Shego's body, holding her tight. There was a long silence between them as they laid there, Shego listening to the rhythm of the engines, Kim listening to the heartbeat of the woman below her head.

"Kimberly Ann, Kimberly Ann," Shego said with a slow and deliberate meter.

"April Elizabeth, April Elizabeth," replied Kim, looking up at Shego.

"That is _not_ what I'd planned," said Shego.

"What was your plan, exactly?" Kim asked.

"Well," Shego began, again speaking with a certain deliberate tone, "we were supposed to get out without getting noticed. You were never supposed to meet him."

"Can I meet your mom some day?" Kim asked.

"Not really," Shego replied in her usual sardonic tone. Kim looked up at her, lip quivering, eyes in full pout. Shego turned her head away. "Not this time," she said. Kim straddled Shego's lap, grabbed her head, and turned it gently back toward her.

"Come on, it'll be fun!" said Kim, staring into Shego's eyes. "Pweeze?" Kim started singing, "Goes to visit her mommy, she feeds her well; her concerns, she forgets them, and remembers being small, playing under the table and dreaming."

Shego looked at her sternly and said, "No. Drop it."

Kim returned to her previous position, and there was another long period of silence.. "Will you play something for me on that violin?" Kim asked out of nowhere.

"When we get home," Shego replied.

"Ok," Kim said, snuggling up to Shego and falling toward sleep. Shego breathed deep, and opened the closer of the cases. Gently she removed the violin, as one would expect to watch someone examine the crown jewels or Declaration of Independence, leaving the bow behind. She put it up to her chin, allowing muscle memory to take control of her actions as she held it. She played out a few bars in her head, fingers moving along the neck gently but with purpose. "Quit moving," Kim mumbled, "I'm trying to sleep." She snuggled in closer and Shego laughed. Kim let out a soft growl of disapproval, and Shego smiled.

She lay there, as still as possible, sleep her only action, introspective thought her only discourse while the woman years her junior lay sleeping on her chest. Eventually, she managed to reach a meditative state; her breath and heartbeat slowed to the point where everything seemed to crawl. Time seemed not to stop passing, but to stop existing entirely. It was simple and it was elegant and it was beautiful, and it was beyond words; the end of the world could have come and gone without her noticing it. It felt as though she'd left her body behind, and yet as though her senses and reflexes had all been heightened that were a hair on her head to move, she'd have caught the offender, even be it but the air around her. She lay there in the state of brilliant peace for what could have been hours or seconds; she couldn't tell.

"I want you to make me feel like I'm the only girl in the world, like I'm the only one that you'll ever love, like I'm the only one who knows your heart," said Kim, stirring, speaking from her sleep.

"Of course, Kimmie," Shego replied, being drawn at last from her state of meditation. "You're the only one in the whole, wide world."

"Really?" Kim asked, still mostly asleep.

"Really," replied Shego. "Now go back to sleep, we've still got a long flight ahead of us."

"Ok," Kim replied, falling asleep again. Shego lay there, trying to find again that state of serenity, but resigning herself to the idea that once was enough for one night, she allowed herself to drift off to sleep.

* * *

Author's Notes

This one is kind of an interesting chapter, as I've had trouble getting it to flow properly. It was originally a section from my first work, which I never could get working right, so I adapted it for this. And don't worry, Shego's mom does show up in the next chapter.

Reviews, as always, are welcome and desired.

BBL


	4. Chapter Four: Impossible Cruelty

Chapter Four: …Impossible Cruelty

We all have our demons,  
And if we're not careful,  
They'll kill us.

Minutes after Falling Asleep on the Jet…

Shego was jolted awake by a series of beeps; Kim stirred, but remained asleep. "_Beep beep be-beep!_" it sounded again. Shego reached into the pocket of Kim's cargo pants and pulled out the Kimmunicator. "What do you want?" she whispered.

"Shego? Where's Kim?" Wade asked, mildly confused. Shego turned the Kimmunicator slightly to reveal the girl sleeping on her chest. "Oh." He blushed, and coughed uncomfortably.

"Get on with it, computer boy," she whispered. "Quietly, if possible."

"Right, well, um… Professor Dementor was seen stealing some sort of new material from a top-secret lab. He's been tracked to his lair in the Austrian Alps, and… You're about thirty miles away?" he said, even more confused than before. "What are you doing in… Never mind, I really don't want to know."

"Alright, we'll go get back whatever he stole. What was it, anyway?" she asked.

"It's a metamaterial called Gallivantium; there's no information on it anywhere," he said.

"English, nerdlinger," Shego demanded, easing out from under Kim.

"Metamaterials are a new type of materials which are designed to exhibit particular properties. The best known work in metamaterials is in the field of stealth; it's what allows your jet to be invisible and undetectable by radar," he said. He turned his attention to his computer, and, turning back, said, "New information coming in, he was overheard saying something about 'sitting on the fourth wall' as he walked out, whatever that means."

"We'll get it back," Shego said. She ended the call and turned her jet toward Professor Dementor's lair. She walked back into the cabin and lifted Kim off the floor. "Wake up, Princess, you've got a mission. It's a real one this time."

Kim turned her head toward Shego and, without opening her eyes, asked, "What's the sitch?"

Shego sat her on the benches and went about gathering her things in preparation of the mission. "Dementor stole something again, and nerd boy wants us to get it back," she said.

Kim rubbed her eyes and stood up. "Wade called?" she asked. "Alright, let's go."

"Already on our way," she replied. A few minutes later, Shego landed her jet on the helipad on top of Professor Dementor's lair. "He's even worse than Drakken," she said to herself.

"I suppose I should be thankful that none of the super-villains are actually any good at taking over the world," Kim said.

Shego grumbled and activated the jet's stealth. She and Kim stepped out of the jet, and were immediately surrounded by Professor Dementor's men, Dementor himself standing in front of the two. "Pressure sensors?" she asked. Dementor nodded. "What, we don't get to hear your shitty German accent before we kick your ass?"

Dementor gestured angrily to one of his men, who stepped forward and said, "He lost his voice last night trying to out-sing Drakken at Karaoke Night." Dementor stood up particularly straight and led the group down into his lair. After what seemed like the navigation of the labyrinth, and an excessive amount of inaudible cursing from Professor Dementor, they arrived at an oversized lab.

Dementor, lacking full use of his voice, pointed to the man who had spoken before and said, clearly strained, "Narrate."

He walked over to a laser grid which surrounded a clear glass canister with a red rock floating in mid air. "Alright, narrating… That's the Gallivantium; nobody knows what it does, but we have it," the man said. "Ok, I need to introduce myself; my name's Steve." Dementor glared at him for a moment, then deactivated the laser grid and grabbed the canister. He removed the lid and dumped out the rock, which floated above his hand. "And there you can see that whatever it is, it floats." Dementor walked over to the giant, comic book-style ray cannon, pulled out the tube at the core, and placed the Gallivantium inside. He closed the door and laughed as best as he could. "And now he's going to fire the super-laser through the Gallivantium at himself."

"What's that supposed to do?" Kim asked skeptically.

Steve looked over at Professor Dementor, who shrugged. He sighed and said, "He doesn't know, but it'll probably give him superpowers or something."

Dementor pulled the giant lever on the machine, and electricity began shooting from the ray to the rings around the end. "Charging," said the voice of the machine. "Time remaining: Five minutes."

Dementor looked at Shego and Kim, and then started waving his hands wildly. "Oh, he wants you to fight and to try and stop him," Steve said. "I'm, uh, just going to step out, if that's alright with the two of you." Kim and Shego looked at each other; Kim shrugged, and Shego pointed to the door. Most of Dementor's men followed after him, leaving ten or so defending the room; Dementor rolled his eyes. They charged the two heroines; Kim launched her grappling hook into the ceiling and swung forward, knocking the six of them who had rushed her in a group across the room and into a wall.

Shego lit her hands and blasted the four who had charged her, knocking them into the pile which Kim had started. Kim jumped from her grappling line and pushed the lever back up. "Powering down," said the mechanic voice. Professor Dementor ran toward the far end of the facility; Kim sprinted full-on and tackled him before he could escape. She grabbed him by the collar, held him to the ground, and started to pull her arm back.

"Kim!" Shego shouted. Kim stopped, holding her fist up, ready to strike. "Kim! It's over!" Kim remained static. Shego ran at her from across the room; Kim dropped Professor Dementor and spun around, delivering a massive kick to Shego's chest, tossing Shego over herself and Dementor and throwing her into the wall. Kim returned her attention to Professor Dementor, who was trying to scramble away; she grabbed his leg and pulled him back to her. He cowered as she grabbed his coat and prepared again to strike.

Shego stood up, overcoming the impact, and blasted Kim in the chest. Kim flew backward across the room, skidding to a stop at the pile of Dementor's injured henchmen.

* * *

Back in the Jet…

Kim rubbed her head. "Ouch," she said, still dazed. She took in the situation; she was buckled into the back of Shego's jet. She tried to unbuckle herself, but the latch wouldn't budge. "Shego, I think the buckle's broken." She pulled on the straps, but they wouldn't move.

Shego walked out of the cockpit. "It's not broken, it's locked. After what you did, I wasn't going to take any chances," she said, standing in front of Kim, hands on her hips. Kim thought for a moment before going white. "You broke, didn't you?"

"Wh-what do you mean?" Kim stammered in response. "What do you mean, I broke? I didn't break; I can't. I can't break… I can't break…" She repeated the last three words again and again, and her hands started shaking as she struggled to escape from her confines.

Shego sighed and unbuckled Kim, embracing her as she shook violently. "Don't worry, we all snap at some point or another." She stood up, and finished, "I think it's time you saw a shrink."

* * *

Somewhere in New York City…

"_Shego_, it's a _pleasure_ to see you again," said the woman who met them on the roof of the building in a voice as snide and vulgar as her expression.

"Hello, _Eva_," Shego replied, "this is Kim. Kim, this is Eva Hargrove, my mother. She specializes in memory recovery."

Kim smiled and held out her still-shaking hand. "Let's get this over with," Eva said, walking away, leading them down to her office. It was an almost stereotypical psychiatric office; everything was in rich, dark colors, the walls covered in books, the furniture leather, and the lighting dim. "Take these," she said, handing Kim a bottle of water and a small plastic cup with a couple of pills in it. "They'll help you focus."

"I thought that there were rules against practicing on friends and family," Kim said, swallowing down the pills.

"Dear, that's because of the chance of being emotionally compromised and being unable to act objectively, and you're neither friend nor family. The only reason I agreed to see you is because I owed Shego a favor," Eva said. "I could not possibly be more detached from you if you were my husband. If you want my help, stop asking questions and do what I tell you. Now lay back and close your eyes." Kim obeyed and walked over to the couch, laying down. "Kim, focus on the sound of my voice. The pills I gave you are a combination of an extremely powerful psychotropic and a sedative; they'll help you recall your dreams and anything which you may have blocked out of your memory. They should be making you tired; give in to the desire to fall asleep." Kim squeezed Shego's hand for a moment; her breath slowed, and her body relaxed. "Good," Eva said. "Can you hear me, Kim?"

"Yes," Kim said, fully in trance.

"Where are you?" Eva asked.

"I'm floating in a void," Kim replied.

"Good, good," Eva said. "You are going back to the time you were being held captive. There is a door in front of you. Go to the door, and open it. Tell me what you see."

"I'm in a white room, strapped to a chair, looking at a bank of screens," Kim said, her voice detached.

"What is on the screens?" Eva asked.

"Horrible things; terrible, nightmarish things," Kim said, her voice starting to tremble. "People are being tortured; bullets burrowing their way through trembling flesh, arms and legs are being ripped from their sockets, blood spraying from wounds, hot rods of metal searing their way into the bodies of screaming victims. Heads are being ripped off of animals while they scream in pain; skin and muscle flayed from bone as bodies jerk in tortured agony. Figures cloaked and veiled in the blood of their victims use evil weapons to cut limb from body while the trapped victims scream…" Her voice trailed off. "Oh God," she screamed, "make it stop!"

"Kim!" Eva snapped sharply, "you need to focus! Shego, squeeze her hand!"

Shego squeezed Kim's hand tightly. "You're almost done, Kim, just hold on a little longer."

"Kim, I need you to tell me what else you see," Eva said, unfazed by Kim's outburst.

Voice still trembling, Kim said, "The screens are changing; there's one video on all of them. It's Ron; he's tied up, hanging in a dark room. A figure in black is walking up to him, and he's struggling. Ron's yelling something, but I can't hear it. The man has a knife. He's… He's stabbing Ron!" Kim started shaking.

Shego moved to hold her, but Eva stopped her. "This she must do," Eva said.

"Over and over, again and again and again; blood everywhere! From chin to hip he draws the knife down the body, wiping his face as blood splashes against it; guts spilling from the still-warm corpse!" Kim stopped the near-convulsion, and said, "He's dead." She fell unconscious, her chest rising and falling slowly.

"She's done now," Eva said, standing up. "She'll be out for a few hours because of the meds, but it's better than listening to her scream."

"I remember you being a bitch," Shego said, standing up and walking over to her mother, "but I never thought even _you_ could be that heartless. I wanted you to help her!"

"You wanted me to figure out what was wrong with her, and to fix it; I've figured out what was wrong, and now it can be fixed, but not by me. You've used up your one favor, _Shego_, now we're even. Take her to someone who gives a damn, and tell them what happened to her. And never, and I mean _never_, come back."

As Shego walked out, Kim in her arms, Eva sung just loud enough to be heard, "Leavin' on a southern train; only yesterday, you lied, promises of what I seemed to be only watched the time go by. All of these things you said to me…"

* * *

In Shego's Jet above Middleton…

Shego watched Kim sleep on the floor of her jet; every few minutes she'd twitch and begin to thrash around, but only for a second or two. She went to the cockpit and began to manually land the jet in the driveway of the Possible residence, making sure to turn off the stealth so any drivers could see it and navigate accordingly, lest they damage her jet. She carried Kim into her room, undressed the girl, whose clothes were soaked in sweat, and laid her in the covers, handing her the Pandaroo she'd prized for years. "Sleep now, Princess, for tomorrow we fight," she said softly, tucking Kim into the sheets. Silently she walked out.

* * *

An Hour Later, At Global Justice Headquarters…

"I'm sorry, but I can't let you in," insisted the woman at the front desk.

"Ok, first," Shego snapped at the woman, leaving her sentence unfinished. She lit up her hand and shot a hole through the lock on the door to her right.

The stunned secretary just sat there until Shego made a move for the door she'd just opened. "Miss, um… Whatever your last name is, you can't go back there unless you have an appointment!"

Shego stared at her in stunned silence for a moment before saying, "You don't know who I am? What the hell?" She kicked the door off its hinged and stormed inside. "Betty!"

Dr. Director opened the door to her office to the sight of the entire room staring at Shego. "Get back to work, everyone," she said.

Shego walked into the woman's office and crossed her arms. "We've got a problem," she said.

"You mean other than you breaking into Global Justice?" Dr. Director asked.

"Where's Stoppable?" Shego asked.

"I told you, he's on a mission and-" Dr. Director began.

"Don't give me that bullshit," Shego shouted. "Kim said that she saw him get killed. Now, either you let Kim talk to Ron, or you tell me where the hell he is."

Dr. Director relented. "He was captured with Ms. Woodward," she said. "We were able to grab him when they tried to move him to another site. I assure you, he's quite alive, but he only regained consciousness this morning. So far he's shown no sign of being affected like the other two, but blood tests show the presence of a cocktail of very powerful sedatives. I'll have one of my agents take you down to him."

* * *

In the Medical Center…

"Where's Kim?" Ron demanded as Shego walked into the room.

"At home, sleeping," she replied. She smiled and said, clearly joking, "Nice job getting yourself grabbed like that."

"Laugh it up, Shego," he replied coldly.

The nurse tending to him turned to her and said, "He'll be back to normal in a few days at worst, but he's still dealing with the drugs."

"Can he leave?" she asked the nurse.

He looked at the charts in his hand, and nodded. "I'd be careful, though; he's stable, but not well."

"Ok, monkey boy, we're going; you're needed elsewhere," she said, turning off the monitoring equipment next to her. The nurse removed the IV in his arm, and unplugged the leads from the sensors on his chest.

"I'm not going anywhere with you," he said. "Not until I speak with Kim."

"She's unconscious in her bed," Shego replied. "What, you don't trust me?"

"You being on Kim's side is sick and wrong on so many levels," he said. "And no, I don't trust you; Dr. Director told me what you did, but I don't believe it. Why would you rescue Kim?"

"Because I was offered a damn good price to do it," Shego snapped. "And when I start a job, I see it through."

Ron stared at her in silence for a solid minute, carefully judging his situation. "That I'd believe," he grumbled. He stood up and walked into the bathroom, coming out dressed in his Global Justice uniform. "Take me to her."

* * *

Back at Kim's House…

Kim woke up from her drug-induced sleep to the sight of Ron, dressed in street clothes, hunched over in her chair staring at her. "Welcome back," he said.

She stared at him, unsure what to make of the situation. Slowly, she sat up, and crawled over to him. Gently, as though reaching for a ghost, she reached out and touched his arm. Realizing his corporeality, or simply being overcome by emotion, she dove and embraced him with all her strength. Ron cleared his throat, and she pulled back. "I'm naked, aren't I?" she asked. He nodded, and she wrapped herself in her sheets.

"You look like you've seen a ghost," Ron said, tossing Kim a shirt and a pair of shorts from her closet.

"I feel like I've seen a ghost," she replied, getting dressed under the covers. "I, uh, I'm sorry about that, I didn't know. That I was naked, I mean. The last thing I remember is falling asleep… Somewhere else. Are you ok? You don't sound like yourself."

"I was drugged; they say I'll be back to normal in a few days," he replied.

"Ron, there's something I should tell you," she said, hesitantly.

"Don't," he said. Rubbing his brow, he said slowly, "Just… don't." There was a knock on the bedroom door, and Shego walked in, phone in hand.

"Aw, how sweet, Stoppable and Princess," she said with a familiar, condescending tone. "There's a call for you, Possible." She tossed Kim the phone.

"Hello?" she asked the person on the other end of the line.

Shego tugged Ron's arm, but he resisted, jerking out of her grasp. She grabbed him by the hair and yanked him out of the room. "Give the girl some privacy," Shego barked as she closed the door.

"You're one to talk," he snapped back.

"What's that supposed to mean," she growled as she walked down the stairs and into the kitchen.

"You're messing with her head," he yelled as he followed her into the kitchen. "The gig is over and your job is done; she's safe, and you can go back to whatever it is you do when you're not raiding the world for supplies."

"Sit," Shego commanded. Ron stood in the doorway, scowling at her, without flinching. "SIT!" she shouted again, this time with enough force to shake his nerves. He sat at the kitchen table, silent but for the drumming of his fingers. "No matter how sick and twisted and wrong you may think it is, this is more than a job to me."

"Suppose I believe you," Ron said. "Why would you care?"

"Because, believe it or not," she said as she sat at the table across from him, "on a certain level I admire the two of you. You still fight the good fight, even after everything the two of you have been through," She hesitated, and added, "You two need the powers, not my brothers; no me."

"I'm still not getting it," Ron said, leaning across the table. "Why?"

"Because the world needs saviors," she said, "now, more than ever. Evil grows dark in the hearts of man; what they did to Kim and that other girl is all the evidence you need. We're dealing with people who have no conscience; who will stop at nothing to achieve their goals, which includes not thinking twice about killing you and turning the two of them into sadistic butchers. Some men aren't looking for anything logical; they can't be bought, bullied, reasoned, or negotiated with. Some men just want to watch the world burn."

"And where do you fall in all of this?" he asked, relaxing his posture a bit.

"Kim is the most important thing in the world to me," she said, locking her gaze onto Ron's, "and not even the end of the earth could change that." She paused. "You're-" She stopped short as she heard Kim's door open. "Not a word!" she whispered harshly. "Stoppable, stay here with Princess, I have to run to the store."

* * *

Author's Notes

We certainly are the children of our parents, aren't we? Now we know where Shego got her attitude, and her aptitude for theft, but what happened between her and her mother will have to wait! Don't worry, I'll do right by my character design; Shego's mom is going to turn out to be even more demented than this chapter could let on.

As for my attempts to unnerve, if it didn't work, there's more to come, and if it did… Well, let's just say that you're in for a long ride.

AAYF


	5. Chapter Five: Paper Nightmares

Chapter Five: Paper Nightmares;

Visions of Terrors a Mind Forced to See

Shego wants me to write out a journal about my nightmares. She says that I need to get it out of my head. I remember scenes from my nightmares sometimes, triggered by everyday things, but usually just a feeling of dread.

I don't feel like myself anymore. I feel like there's something else inside of me; half the time I can't form complete thoughts, and there's always a voice inside my head, my voice, whispering horrible things. Every time I see something I don't like it tells me to use my influence and my skills to right the injustices of the world. When I see a man living on the streets, and it tells me to rob a bank; when I see someone almost get into a crash because they were swerving in and out of traffic it tells me to take the wheel and run them off the road. Shego won't let me drive.

It tells me to kill whoever was charge of the place I was held.

I have no doubt that this will fuel my nightmares tonight; everything I do winds its way in. The last time she was in a dream, I ended up killing her. She was already awake, rubbing my arm, and when I rolled over she smiled at me; it's the most beautiful thing in the world. I smiled back, kissed her on the cheek, and got up. I walked into the kitchen, and there was a pot of coffee already made, so I made a couple of cups for us. I felt something grab me around the waist, and I dropped both mugs onto the floor. In reflex, I pulled a knife from the knife block, spun around, and stabbed her in the chest. She fell to the floor, gasping for breath. I grabbed her and held her in my arms as she faded. She coughed out one last message before she died: "I don't blame you."

That night I woke up screaming. There is nothing more painful than dreaming that you've killed the person you love the most. I know she thinks I'm still a confused kid who couldn't possibly love her, but whatever happened to me, it's changed me more than just rage and nightmares. I'm always excessively emotional now, and I'm acutely aware of that fact.

And then there's Ron, the one person who has been there for me more than anyone else. It's like we're part of the same person. Just being around him again makes me feel more like myself.

I don't know why I just thought of this, but there's another nightmare I should get out of my head; I had this dream every time I fell asleep on Shego's jet on the way back to Global Justice, and it's the only one which doesn't start with me waking up. I never know what I'm doing when it starts, but the first thing I do is run to a car accident. There's a girl lying half under a car. I run over to her and I hold her in my lap. I ask her why she did it, why she ran in front of the car, and she replies that she threw herself in front of it because nobody loved her. I start crying and I tell her that she's wrong, that I love her. She dies in my arms. I stand up and I scream for dear life, and I go back in time just far enough to see her get hit again.

I was screaming in my head after that, every time, hundreds of times that night. Hours and hours of nightmares, of sadness and desperation, wishing nothing at that moment more than to be able to save her once.

What are these nightmares supposed to do to me? Did they try to drive people insane? Did they do this to anyone else? Shego won't tell me; I think she's afraid I might try and find them. She says that I was the only one, but I don't believe her. I also don't remember anything that happened between when I fell asleep at her mom's office and when I woke up in my bed, but every time I bring it up Shego goes even more pale than usual.

What did they do to me? What have I become? I'm not crazy; not yet, at least, but I feel the grasp of sanity slipping from my mind with each passing hour. I already lost control once, what's to say that it doesn't happen again? What if Shego's not there next time? It's well within me to kill, and I can feel the constraints on my mind loosening. It should be terrifying, but it's not. That in itself should be terrifying, but it doesn't scare me either. Nothing scares me, except losing her.

What's going to happen when my dad returns with Jim and Tim? I was hardly able to manage them when I was fine, but now, with m


	6. Chapter Six: Mysterious Sentimentalism

Chapter Six: Mysterious Sentimentalism;

The Workings of the Mind of the Mysterious Green Woman

I told Kim that if she started a diary like I asked her to, I'd start one, too, so here we go. My name is April Elizabeth Hargrove; I am better known as Shego, villain and assistant to Drew Lipsky, who is better known as Dr. Drakken. Well, I'm actually a retired villain; I promised Kim that I'd retire if she tried to fight what was happening to her, and even though she doesn't remember, I intend to keep my promise.

Is love a foregone conclusion or is it the fight that makes it worth something?

Why did I just write that? Why am I writing in pen?

Anyway, I can't help but wonder what Kimmie is writing. I see her sitting at the kitchen table, writing in her journal, and it's the most beautiful thing I've ever seen. I don't understand it, but when I see her sitting there like that, I once again have faith in the good of the world; it's just so perfect that maybe we're not all as lost as I thought.

What the hell is wrong with me? Still, I have to wonder, how did I get this far from being a hero? I know what I told Ron, and it's all true, more or less, but I never thought it'd go this far. I left because of my brothers; Hanque (Hego) is the same ignorant idealist when I left that he is now. I thought he'd have gotten it through his head after all these years, but he still believes in the absolutes of law and crime. Lawful Stupid, I think they call it; some poor bastard believes in the law over morality.

And then there's Edward (Mego), the insufferable egotist. He's the most selfish and self-righteous little brat I've ever met. He's not even all that useful; I mean, what, he can shrink? That's really only good for… I don't even want to think about that. He would, too.

Maybe I'm being too hard on them, and I definitely need to go easier on the Wegos. Samuel and Quinton are good kids, they really are, but their allegiance to my brother is irritating beyond tolerance. Can they not see how absolutely bat-shit crazy either of them are? Well, rather, either of their brothers, not either of them. Hanque and Ed are just so insane that it's almost enough to make me pity them, but Sam and Q are still young. God, they turned fifteen this last spring; there's plenty of time for them to realize that this world isn't all Hanque says it is. Maybe I should get them a gift. Better late than never, right? Maybe anonymously.

Well, as long as I'm putting something on paper, I might as well tell my story. At least if it falls into the wrong hands, I'll get my side heard.

My story starts the day of the comet, what some have dubbed the _GO Impact Event_. We were in our tree house, Ed, Hanque, and I; Sam and Q were in the yard below. Our parents were in the house, preparing dinner. My father was an exceptional cook at one time, and my mother loved to help, no matter how terrible she may have been, or may still be. This was before she turned the monster she is today.

The comet came down and hit the trunk of the tree, knocking it down and throwing the tree house to the ground. The comet carried with it a virus from the depths of space, which wound its way into our DNA, forever changing who we were. It could only survive a few minutes in the harsh and inhospitable atmosphere of the Earth, and was gone before any samples could be taken, but not before it could infect us. The effect was immediate; our powers were present the second we got our wits about us. But stranger than the powers themselves was that the knowledge of how to use those powers were imprinted into our minds; genetic memories, as it were, manifest through dreams.

My dad was terrified, and mostly just happy that we were fine, but my mom, a woman with an indomitable will and Ph.D.s in both genetic chemistry and psychology, was fascinated by them. She insisted that we keep our powers secret, as she knew that there were a number of people who would cheat the devil for a chance to investigate what had happened to us. Her story for me is that I'd been born with a rare pigmentation disease which led to my green color.

She took blood samples from us, and compared them with ones she'd already had on hand, which she'd taken years ago in the event that we were hit by a virus which changed our DNA; crazy, right? She found what had happened, but there wasn't anything she could do about it, as it had changed us so completely that we were no longer human; the difference between us and our old selves was more than that between humans and chimps.

Failing to revert us back to our former selves, she began working on replicating the powers; if others could have the power, we wouldn't be freaks anymore. She obsessed over it, becoming cold and distant, caring only for her work. She'd leave for work before we got up, and when she got home she'd go straight to her lab to continue working. Eventually, she wouldn't even come up for dinner, or even look at us.

One day, she just left, leaving behind only a note telling us that she couldn't stand to be around the mocking faces of her children, and that she'd contact us when she was finally over the insanity to which she'd been driven by our powers. She'd also sent her video research logs to every news outlet in Go City, sharing with all of them at once the revelation that her children had superpowers.

The next morning, we were assaulted by the media, everyone trying to take our pictures or get a statement. Hanque, nineteen at the time and already built like an NFL linebacker, cleared up the entire situation in one simple blunder of a statement; "Team Go is here to protect Go City."

After that, everything started happening around us; they started construction of Go Tower, they built statues of us, they even gave us each a key to the city. Things were pretty good; we showed up for major events in costume, took out the odd villain, and had a good time in general. Of course, having been the one to make the initial statement, Hanque was thought to be the leader, and he was treated as such. All the glory went to him and Ed, who was seen as the tactician of the group, with me being the background; Sam and Q were too young to do anything but look cute.

When construction on Go Tower was finished, my dad didn't feel the need to stick around anymore, so he moved back to Germany, back to our family's vacation home. That's when things started getting bad between my brothers and me; Hanque took over everything, as the oldest. That was seven years ago.

Seven years ago, I left Team Go because of differences with my brothers. Hanque says that I started liking evil, but I'm not sure; I know I liked the idea of freedom, but I'm not sure, honestly, if I liked the idea of doing whatever I wanted or just the idea of doing whatever he didn't want me to do. I guess it really doesn't matter at this point. Mostly, I think, I left because I couldn't deal with being a hero anymore.

Before I left, the last thing we did together, as a team, was to go after a bunch of terrorists. Not the kind everyone thinks of in this day and age, religious fanatics from the Middle East and Africa, but the Timothy McVeigh kind; ones who look just like you and me (well, not _me_, per se…), who you'd never guess were going to commit atrocities in the name of their own twisted social beliefs. They were extreme conservatives who wanted to scare the world into following their agenda. Now, I don't mean 'extreme conservatives' like we hear on the more liberal-leaning news networks; these guys would make the "Tea Party, Obama is Hitler, 'Keep your government hands off my Medicare', I've got mine screw you" 'extreme conservatives' look like the lovechild of… Well, there's actually nobody liberal enough for this analogy. They wanted to repeal every amendment to the Constitution except for the Second and shut down every government entity in the country; no universal suffrage, no anti-slavery laws, no child protection, no police, no Social Security, no anything. They wanted a completely capitalist free-market society, run by white men, in a "government" mandated by 'God', censoring everything they didn't like.

They were going to blow up every library in the city to rid us of the idea that they weren't the almighty destined servitors of God; Go City Public Library, Go University's library, and the libraries of every public school in the area.

We caught them before they could do anything, and we took them in, but they got away. They got away with their crimes, completely free; we didn't have any evidence against them. To keep themselves from being caught, they decided not to make the explosives until the day of the event; this was both a blessing and an obstacle, as while it meant they couldn't set them off early, it came at the price of them not having any of the explosives in their possession. Nothing in their possession linked them to any attempt to do harm, not even literature. Without any evidence, they couldn't get a conviction, and the monsters were allowed to go free.

Two weeks later, the seven men were found among the burning remains of a school. The school had been closed for the day because of repairs, but they didn't know that. At the leader's home, we found a note explaining their entire plot, and the previous one; the one we managed to stop. Hanque had said, at the time, that justice had been served; no harm had come to innocents, the school was slated to be torn down in a month (the end of the school year) anyway, and the bad guys had been taken down. Ed had thought it 'poetic' that bombers would blow up an empty school while they were still inside. Sam and Q, eight at the time, weren't allowed to go with us.

That didn't help me, though. It was my idea to go after them before they put their plan into action. It was my fault that they were allowed to go free. While it was some slight condolence that nobody got hurt, it was my fault that they were even able to try again.

That night, I left; I took the jet and I left without a word. I left a note saying that I couldn't deal with their hypocritical bullshit anymore, and that they wouldn't be able to find me until I wanted to be found. I left Go City behind, and I headed to Eastern Europe. The area was, and still is, a hotbed for morally-questionable crimes, and it's always been an information hotspot. I spent a few months earning enough money to survive and move on. I was a thief of Soviet secrets, from an empire which no longer existed, from top secret facilities which were all but unguarded, for people with too much time and money on their hands. Many of the new governments didn't want anything to do with the former Soviet warehouses, even five or six years later, and only stationed one or two guards. Quite often, their orders, literally translated, were 'Guard the facility, and don't steal anything.' Most of the guards were happy enough to take a nap if you brought them lunch and a drink; those guards who weren't willing to let you in generally couldn't be bothered to come in to work anyway.

The biggest secret I took during that time was the launch codes to the areas ICBMs, which had long since been removed and hopefully dismantled. The code was 000012340000.

After that, I managed to get myself into a bit of trouble. I'll spare the details, as I don't think that there would be enough paper in this book to write the entire story (I knew I should have grabbed a notebook rather than a small journal), but long story short, I was conscripted by the Central Intelligence Agency for some covert affairs; mostly, it involved stealing state secrets from the enemies of the United States. That job didn't go so well, and I learned firsthand why we're supposed to trust our allies.

I was sent to find out about the French nuclear program, as if the Frenchies were any sort of a threat to us. Unfortunately, the French didn't like being spied on; excellent prison system, compared to some I've seen. It is there I met Drew Lipsky, who was serving a six-month sentence for attempting to convince the French government to, coincidentally enough, use their nuclear program for something more than clean energy. He was as much the absent-minded professor then as he is now, only less jaded. Much, much less jaded. But then again, he was just starting out on his path to world domination. He wasn't even blue yet.

So, long story short, I blew up the prison wall and drug him out. That was about ten seconds after he'd asked me to show him my powers. I did feel bad about the wall, so I sent the French equivalent of the Department of Corrections an envelope for a hundred thousand dollars US. I never did hear back from them, though I did get the privilege of having a police tail when I went there on vacation once.

After we escaped, he took me back to an uncharted island in the Mediterranean. It was far enough out of the borders of the surrounding countries that nobody owned it, so he built a house and a laboratory; this would eventually grow to be his primary lair, the one which has been blown up no less than three dozen times, as many by his own blunders as by Kim's intervention. He seemed very keen on the idea that he could find a way to replicate my powers without any invasive tests.

He was half right. The tests were only mildly invasive, no more so than a typical doctor's visit; he was able to replicate half of my powers. He tried to create a way to increase the rate of healing of anyone who had been injected with his serum, but it had some unforeseen consequences. For one, the healing was tied to skin pigmentation. My eyes are green, so my skin became green; his eyes are blue (not that you can tell), so his skin became blue. The down side was that it didn't actually work; it just made him blue.

For six years he worked on a way to finish the process, which led to the heist which introduced me to Kimberly Possible. Sort of. That was his idea of amassing enough power to get people to listen to him. From there, it all kind of went downhill; it became less about solving the problem and more about conquering the world to be rid of the humiliation of failing to conquer the world. It was a fire that fed on itself, now that I think about it.

For me, it was the fun. I didn't care about what I was doing, it was just fun to do it. Yeah, I'm a nutjob, what are you going to do about it?

I just looked over again, and Kim's still sitting there, writing in her journal. What is she writing about? Maybe she's writing about her dreams; if they're half as bad as they seem, it would be good for her to get them out on paper. God, she's so beautiful.

Something's wrong with me. Is it just love?

You know, love is one of those funny things, as in the end, it makes no sense or difference; you're going to love whomever you love. I've never thought about it before now; I've never had any reason to think about it before now. Love doesn't discriminate; your soul mate isn't always the same race or creed or religion, or the opposite sex. You're lucky if your soul mate is even born in the same century, much less the same place.

Maybe the world isn't as dark of a place as I always think it is. It's certainly not as bright and shiny as Kimmie and her friends seem to think, but maybe it's not as miserably dim and self-serving as I thought. Everywhere I have gone, the powerful are strong on the backs of the weak, but maybe, below the weak, holding them up, are people like my Princess, her family, and even Ron.

Kim's not a hero; a hero does what they do in full view of the world, for a million reasons all their own, but eventually they retire or grow corrupt. No, Kim's no hero; she's a saint. She doesn't do it for the fame or the fortune, and nobody is going to realize just how much she does for the world until she's no longer there to do it. She's been through so much; she's done so much for the world, all without much more than a scratch, but how long can her luck hold out?

Maybe it already ran out. Maybe that's what this is. I don't know. Maybe she took it all for granted, and the penalty for hubris really _is_ the tyranny of Murphy. All I know is that she's mine now, and that's all that matters.


	7. Chapter Seven: Blind Madness

Chapter Seven: Blind Madness

Those nightmares…  
I'm sorry,  
I'm so sorry…

At Kim's House…

Kim spun from her seat at the table as the sound of shattering glass rang through the house. Seconds later came the sharp blasts of flash grenades; she only barely managed to avert her eyes and cover her ears before the one lobbed into the kitchen had gone off, not that either action could avert the inevitable disorientation. She thrashed about on the ground, more a convulsive reaction to the events around her than a voluntary action, until she felt the crack of the butt of a rifle against her skull.

* * *

Unknown…

Kim awoke to the feeling of being pulled along the ground as shouts and gunfire rang out around her. "God damn it, Kim, we don't have time for this!" Shego shouted as pulled Kim around a corner. "Shake it off, Princess; we need you in the fight!"

"What's going on?" Kim asked, dazed.

"Oh, for fuck's sake!" shouted a rough voice from down the hall.

"Shut it, Barkin!" Shego yelled out. "We're lucky she's even alive! You try being knocked unconscious three times in the last hour!" She turned her attention back to Kim. "What's the last thing you remember?"

"We were at my house, and-" she began before she was cut off.

"Oh great, she's forgotten the entire fight!" Barkin shouted. He ran around the corner and picked up the assault rifle gripped loosely in Kim's right hand.

"You're not helping!" Shego shouted at him. "Kim, we're on Gemini's space station, and we're being boarded. Does that ring a bell?" Kim shook her head. "Oh, come on!" Shego spun around and delivered half a clip of her Glock into the head of the alien invader who had run up behind her; the creature, a four-armed abomination in a black shell, twitched as its white blood spilled out across the floor. "Ok, we were abducted by Gemini so he could show off the giant death ray on his secret space station, which he planned on using to kill every living thing in every major city until every country turned over control to him. These aliens, whatever the fuck they are, invaded the station after the first shot; a warning fired into the ocean." She spun around and blasted another alien in the head with the rest of the clip in her pistol. "Damn it, I shouldn't be out of ammo yet!"

"Well, there is a war on. Is it possible you miscounted?" shouted Dr. James Possible, who tossed her an assault rifle as he ran past. He took cover on the other side of the intersection and fired his revolver at a charging alien, one shot blasting a massive hole though its head. "Ann, check Kim for a concussion."

"I'm a little busy here!" she shouted back as she ran down the corridor, chased by three of the abominations. She slammed her fist against a button on the wall, sealing the bulkhead door and severing half of the head of one and locking the other two on the other side. She ran over to Kim, and quickly examined her daughter. "Physically, she's fine. The memory loss is probably from the stress."

"Where's Ron?" Kim asked, standing and grabbing the Desert Eagle strapped to her hip.

The three others looked at each other, and Shego said softly, "Ron's dead. He held them off long enough to allow us to escape. He saved us."

Kim dropped to the flood again. Shego tried to help her up, but was waved off as Kim stood again. "Let's blow these bastards to hell," she said.

"That's my girl!" Shego shouted. "We need to get to the auxiliary controls to set the self destruct and activate the escape pods."

"Lead on," Kim said, "I'll take the rear. Barkin, we're moving!" Steve Barkin ran back toward the group. The ceiling gave way and one of the nightmare beasts dropped down on him; it dug its fangs deep into his throat, and with his last breath he drew his knife and lodged it deep into the creature's head. The alien twitched with spasms for a moment before dropping dead to the floor, dragging Barkin's corpse with it. Kim ran over and took his assault rifle, tossing it to her mom, who readied it deftly to her shoulder.

The four ran down the corridor, killing anything in their path with unworldly precision. Corpses littered the halls already, making more difficult the task of navigating without tripping over the debris. "Here!" James shouted, ducking into a large, dark room. The door closed behind them, and Shego fused it shut with her hands.

"Firing in five seconds," said the station's voice.

The four turned to the console in the middle of the room. They stared at the giant monitor as the whole of the planet was engulfed with the red energy of the death ray; all life snuffed out in an instant, so violent the action that neither ocean nor even cloud remained. Lost in the agony of the moment, they were drawn back to the events around them only by the sound of scratching and clawing at the door. James turned a key which was already in the console and activated the self destruct sequence.

"Five minutes until self destruct," said the station's voice.

"Come on," Ann yelled, dragging her husband to the end of the room where an escape pod was located. Kim bashed the key which had activated the self destruct with the butt of the gun, preventing deactivation. She and Shego ran after her parents and dove into the escape pod. Ann slammed the eject button, and the pod shot out of the station.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry," Kim cried as the escape pod carrying her, her lover, and her parents shot into space. "If I hadn't blacked out, Earth would still be there."

"There, there, Princess, it's ok," Shego cooed softly. "Nobody leaves this world alive; not Kimberly Ann Possible, not James or Ann Possible, not even Shego." She held tight the crying girl, wishing she could say something to comfort any of them. She opened her arm, and James and Ann moved in; one final embrace before certain rest eternal.

Kim opened her eyes and stared out the window of the escape pod at the emptiness of space. "What do you think's out there?"

Shego choked up, her eyes welling with tears, and said, "Love, and happiness, and chocolate, and everything you've ever wanted. It's the most beautiful thing you've ever seen, and Ron, and Nana, and everyone you've ever loved will be there waiting for you." Softly, she began to sing.

Love of mine,  
Some day you will die,  
But I'll be close behind,  
I'll follow you into the dark.

No blinding light,  
Or tunnels to gates of white,  
Just our hands clasped so tight,  
Waiting for the hint of a spark.

If heaven and hell decide that they both are satisfied,  
Illuminate the no's on their vacancy signs,  
If there's no one beside you when your soul embarks,  
Then I'll follow you into the dark.

In Catholic school,  
As vicious as Roman rule,  
I got my knuckles bruised,  
By a lady in black.

And I held my tongue,  
As she told me, "Son,  
fear is the heart of love,"  
So I never went back.

If heaven and hell decide that they both are satisfied,  
Illuminate the no's on their vacancy signs,  
If there's no one beside you when your soul embarks,  
Then I'll follow you into the dark.

You and me,  
Have seen everything to see,  
From Bangkok to Calgary,  
And the soles of your shoes,

Are all worn down.  
The time for sleep is now;  
It's nothing to cry about,  
Cause we'll hold each other soon,  
In the blackest of rooms.

If heaven and hell decide that they both are satisfied,  
Illuminate the no's on their vacancy signs,  
If there's no one beside you when your soul embarks,  
Then I'll follow you into the dark.

Then I'll follow you into the dark.

* * *

Kim held her knees to her chest and cried silently as the woman next to her slept peacefully and safely in her bed.


	8. Chapter Eight: Return to Action

Chapter Eight: Return to Action

_Audentes fortuna iuvat_,  
Or, 'fortune favors the bold.'

In Kim's Bedroom, The Next Morning…

Shego growled as she was once again awoken by the sound of the Kimmunicator. "_Beep Beep Be-Beep!_" it chimed. Shego snatched it from the cradle on the nightstand, and answered it without a word, only the scowl of a woman disturbed one too many times in the middle of her sleep.

"Am I disturbing you?" Dr. Director asked. Shego nodded her head and panned the Kimmunicator to show a sleeping Kim. Dr. Director nodded, and Shego got out of bed.

She went down into the living room, and said, "I hope you and computer boy won't make a habit of waking me up."

"This is urgent," Dr. Director said. "We've had a break-in at one of our proxy facilities, and it's right up Kim's alley; someone just raided Middleton Hospital. Kim's mother has already been notified, and is on her way as we speak."

"Did you tell her about what happened to Kim?" Shego asked with a mix of criticism and concern.

"No, it would be better for you to do that," she replied.

"I'm sure Kim knows exactly how she wants to break it to her," Shego replied, glancing to the stairs.

"Not Kim, Shego," Dr. Director began. "You. You need to be the one to inform Mrs. Dr. Possible of her daughter's condition. This is your responsibility, Shego; in case you haven't noticed, Kim's not exactly herself, and there's no telling what will happen when she sees her mother."

"So you want _me_ to tell her mother about what happened? How is that a good idea?" Shego snapped as she glared into the screen on the Kimmunicator. "If my recent change of heart has somehow confused you, let me remind you that I've spent the past four years being the person who would send her daughter home with cuts and bruises and cracked ribs."

"Dr. Possible is more clever than you give her credit for being, Shego," Dr. Director said, almost soothingly. "She can tell more about a situation than you or I ever could, even with our respective trainings. It's her job, as a doctor, to be able to read a situation beyond face value."

"Fine," Shego relented, "but when this goes south, you're getting to clean up the mess, _Director_."

"I suppose I owe you that much," Dr. Director said, displeased, as she cut off communication.

"I gotta get Kim to teach me to make calls on this thing," she growled under her breath. She started back up the stairs just in time to see Kim open the door.

"Hey, Shego," Kim said, starting down the stairs.

"Mornin', Princess," Shego said in a now-familiar tone. "We got mission; break-in at the hospital. Get your gear; we're heading over there as soon as you're ready to go."

Kim looked at her nervously, and asked, "Are you sure I'm ready for this?"

"You'll be fine," Shego said, tossing her the Kimmunicator and walking into the kitchen.

Kim sighed and walked back into her room, closing the door behind her. She drew the curtains and changed into her mission clothes. '_What if I'm not ready?_' she thought to herself. '_What if I snap again and I actually hurt someone this time?_'

There was a knock on the door to her room, and Shego walked in, taking off her shirt as she went. She threw it on the bed and stepped out of her boxers, much to Kim's apparent surprise. She pulled her typical green and black uniform from the back of the chair over which it had been hanging and stepped into it, only then noticing Kim's expression. "It's not like you haven't seen me naked before," she said.

"Yeah, but I always thought you'd change with a little more dignity than that," Kim said, fastening her belt.

"Time is of the essence, Princess," Shego replied, pulling on the suit and allowing it to fasten itself shut. "You should have seen me while I was working for Drakken." Kim blushed wildly at the thought. "Aw, is Kimmie jealous?"

Kim tried to speak, but, finding it impossible to do so, she walked out of the room. Shego smiled as watched her walk out the door and down the stairs before running her fingers through her hair and followed after. She walked into the living room to the sight of Kim staring at her particularly uncomfortably. "You ready?" she asked.

"As I'll ever be," Kim said, holding out her hand toward Shego, who took it and led Kim out of the house with surprising speed. They walked, hand in hand, to the back of the jet, which was still parked in driveway; there was a note on the door, which read, 'Please stop blocking the road, Shego. Sincerely, MPD'. She tossed a spark onto the paper, chuckling as it burned to ash, and opening the rear hatch to the jet. The two stepped inside, and Kim moved over to the benches on the side of the jet, where she usually sat, and buckled herself in. Shego stepped into the cockpit and took off; Kim pulled the Kimmunicator from her pocket and placed a call.

"Hey Kim!" Wade said, swinging his chair around to face the camera. "What's up?"

"How do you like working for Global Justice?" Kim asked, noticing the flurry of activity around him; there were three or four people running around in the background, reading screens and relaying information.

"It beats being at home," he replied. "I had some cool stuff there, but they gave me my own R&D division!"

"That's great!" Kim said, poorly feigning enthusiasm for her friend. "What's the sitch on the hospital?"

"Earlier this morning, an unknown assailant broke into the genetics research lab at Middleton Hospital," he said. "We've got nothing on them; there wasn't a single piece of evidence at the scene. They took out the cameras, covered their tracks, not even a hair. Kim, this even outdoes Shego."

"I heard that, nerdlinger!" Shego shouted from the cockpit.

"Well, it's true," he said. "This is technically impossible; there's no residual energy, no anomaly residue… The only thing I could think of was that whoever did this was out of sync with the universe, but even _that_ would have left evidence when they pulled the equipment out with them."

"You're chasing a ghost, ma'am," said one of the researchers who had walked up to the camera.

"Or something close to it," Wade said. "I've got one more scan to complete; it should be done by the time you get there. How far out are you?"

"Five seconds," Shego shouted back to him.

Wade's eyes opened a little wider. "Shego, you really should let us take a look at that jet," he said.

"Not a frozen chance in hell," She replied, walking back after having landed the jet. "This here baby is mine, and nobody but nobody gets to lay their hands on her."

"I'll call you after we talk to the witnesses on site," Kim said before shoving the Kimmunicator into her pocket. She and Shego stepped out of the jet, and were immediately inundated with comments by the medical staff that had surrounded the jet upon its landing. They were hurried inside by a short, balding man of disheveled appearances.

As soon as they were away from the crowd, which disbursed upon the man's efforts, he cleared his throat and spoke in a slight German accent. "My name is Dr. Ricken von Braun; I am the head of the genetics research laboratory run by Global Justice," he said. "I hope you will excuse my easily-excited colleagues; they are distraught over the loss of our research and our equipment, but not so much so that they cannot speak, which they do, at length, whether you want them to or not."

"So, Dr. von Braun, what, exactly, was stolen?" Kim asked.

"Ah, ah, so direct," he said, dismayed, "but I suppose it is not without reason. Come, this way." He turned and walked into one of the labs. "This is one of two identical laboratories; the other had been ransacked by the vandals." He pulled a very small, very short needle from the inside of his coat, and jabbed Shego's cheek.

"What was that for?" Shego demanded, smacking the needle from his hand and wiping the forming drop of blood from her cheek.

"Do not touch it!" he snapped back. Carefully, he picked up the needle and disposed of it, placing it in a hazardous waste disposal container and dropping it down the chute. He walked back over to Shego and placed a small tag up to the drop of blood on her cheek, which drew in the blood sample, and deposited the tag in one of the open bays on the machine. He drew another needle from his coat and took a step sideways toward Kim.

Shego grabbed his arm and held his hand over his head. "Ask the lady before you go stabbing her," she said harshly.

He fumed for a moment, mumbling in German, before yanking his arm from Shego's grasp. "May I?" he grumbled to Kim, who nodded cautiously. He quickly jabbed her arm, disposed of the needle, and placed a tag up to the drop on her arm. He placed it in the remaining bay, and pushed the entire section down, activating the machine. The screens faded on, and the machine chimed a few notes to note its activation. "This machine is designed to analyze two genetic profiles, and to combine them into a single DNA strain; the child of the two parent samples. We are currently testing whether or not such means would be feasible for providing children to families who are otherwise incapable of having children, due to any number of biological reasons; cancer, infertility, what have you. So far, it is very successful." The screen changed, displaying the message, 'Analysis Complete'. Dr. von Braun tapped the screen, and the table in the center of the room hummed softly. Before them appeared the hologram of a young girl, three or four years old, with black hair, and green eyes. "This is the result of the combination of your genetic profiles, selected by the computer for the highest level of genetic diversity, as per its programming."

Shego reached out and touched the image, and it dissolved around her hand, returning as she withdrew. "Could it, I mean, could we, you know, have children?" she said, her voice trailing off.

"Hmmm," he said in reply, looking over figures on the screen. "I'm sorry, but despite this rendering, the system is incapable of making sense of your DNA, as it is so far removed from anything it has been programmed to understand. Even with its heuristic base, it would need many more samples to understand what to make of you."

"You don't want kids, do you?" Kim teased, turning to Shego.

"Not now, Kim," she snapped quickly.

As if on cue, the Kimmunicator chimed. Kim drew it from her pocket. "What's the sitch?" she asked.

"Hey Kim," Wade said from the other side, "the scans just finished, and I've got some good news. It was nearly impossible to find, but there's a tiny level of residual nanite activity in the room; these things are like nothing I've ever seen. They deactivated the security cameras by looping the feed, then someone destroyed the roof and lifted everything out, and the nanites rebuilt the roof and destroyed all of the evidence."

"Any idea who's up to the challenge?" Shego asked.

"No, but I know somebody who does," he replied with a devious smile.

* * *

The Club…

"Rollin' in hot 'n' heavy tonight, Shego?" Rick asked.

"I'm sure I have no idea what you're talking about, Rick," Shego said with half-hearted sincerity.

He sighed. "Bringing Kim Possible was enough of a chance, but her sidekick, no offense, and the director of Global Justice, both in uniform? You're just asking for a fight," he said. "I'm sorry, but you're going to need to find another place for your social gathering tonight."

"I'm afraid this isn't a social call, Rick. We have an appointment to see the boss, and for the kind of thing we're going to be asking, we needed them," Shego said.

Rick relented and pulled the rope. "Don't make me regret this," he said, stepping aside.

"If we break anything, I'll pay out of my personal account," Dr. Director said as she walked past, placing her hand on his cheek and winking with her one good eye.

"Lady, I don't know if I think that's sexy or just creepy, but if you ever want a date, I'm single," he said.

"Maybe I'll show up for one sometime," she said, walking away.

"Don't toy with him, Betty; he's a nice guy," Shego said as Dr. Director caught up to the rest of the group.

"Who said anything about toying with him?" Dr. Director said.

"Well, isn't this a surprise," Jacques Lu Cont said as he walked up to the group from behind. "My dear Shego hasn't gone soft, she's gone hero."

"Is there some point to your heckling or can we skip the formal banter and go straight to the part where you take me to your boss?" Shego asked.

"Well, all the wit in the world would be lost if not for these few moments of dialogue," he replied, "but I suppose we can do it later." He led Shego by the arm to a lavish room off to the side. "I will spare the formalities, as I believe we all know of each other."

Big Daddy Brotherson laughed a deep belly laugh as the party filed into the room one at a time. "Kimberly, my dear, what have you brought me this time?"

"Well, that depends," Kim replied. "What kind of game would you like to play tonight?"

"With you, I should like to play no games," he said solemnly.

"Aw, why not?" Kim asked, disappointed. "I've been looking forward to this all day!"

Brotherson looked at the group with sadness for a few moments, then back to Kim. He burst into laughter. "Kimberly Possible, you have quite the gift for this sort of thing! So, tell me, what can I do for you this fine evening?" he asked.

"I bet you can guess," Kim said, walking up to him and handing him a small memory card.

He flipped the card around his fingers for a moment, and said, "The hospital incident… Well, unfortunately, not even I know much about it."

"I think the data on the card will jog your memory, and the promise of what I've come to offer you will certainly fill your pockets," Kim said. "Dr. Director has agreed to share with you the Global Justice villain's database, which includes all of their secret projects; nothing on any Global Justice research, or on any outsourced project, and you can only do it once."

"How would that help me?" Brotherson asked wryly.

Kim stepped back and Dr. Director stepped forward. "Among the other contents of the database is an up-to-date record of every villain's stock of… Specialized parts, shall we say," Dr. Director began. "If it got out that you knew where some very rare, very hard to find, and very valuable parts were located, I could see it being very profitable for you; a terawatt power regulator, like the one Professor Dementor recently built, could be incredibly useful."

"Be careful, director, or you will give away all your bargaining chips," he said.

"Call it a measure of good faith," she replied.

Brotherson contemplated the situation at hand in silence, weighing his options. "Alright," he said, "I will call for my payment in the near future, but for now I will give you what you would like. The man you are looking for is Dr. Everto Icarus; he was hired to design the nanites, and he can tell you who hired him. But before you go, Kimberly, what is on this data card?"

"The literal bargaining chip," she replied.

"Oh, you are clever," he said, smiling.

* * *

En Route to Everto Icarus' Lab…

Dr. Director gestured to the map she'd laid out on the floor of Shego's jet. "Shego, you and Kim will enter through the ventilation shafts on the roof; Ron and I will enter through the front door as a standard Global Justice inspection of the facility," she said. "Fortunately, Dr. Icarus is a card-carrying member of the Global Justice Research and Development team RaMRoD."

"RaMRoD?" Kim asked.

"Robotics and Metamaterials Research and Development," Ron replied. "Two words: Stealth Mech; giant invisible walking robots."

Shego stared at him skeptically. "Why?" she asked. "How could you _possibly_ justify needing those?"

"We make them first, in case someone else makes one," Dr. Director said, rolling up the map and stowing it on the seat behind her. "It's called preparedness."

"It's called awesomeness," Ron chimed in.

The navigation system chirped, and Shego said, "We're here; ready up." The jet descended to the roof of the building and the four walked out of the rear hatch. "Just like old times, _Ms. White_," she said, jabbing Dr. Director in the ribs with her elbow. Kim and Shego slipped to the side, staying out of the view of the cameras, while Dr. Director and Ron descended the stairs to the lobby.

* * *

Ron/Dr. Director…

"Good afternoon," the man behind the desk said as Ron and Dr. Director walked into the lobby.

"Good afternoon," Dr. Director said. "I'm Dr. Elizabeth Director, head of Global Justice; this is Ron Stoppable, my assistant for the evening. We're here for a surprise inspection of the facilities under section 11-B of the contract Icarus Industries signed with Global Justice."

"I'm sorry, but I'm afraid Mr. Icarus and Director St. Augustine are out on business at the moment," he replied. "But, if you like, I can have the on-shift lab sub-director give you a tour."

"That would be sufficient," Dr. Director said.

The secretary nodded and picked up the phone. "I'm sorry to bother you, Mr. Diego, but a Global Justice inspection team is here. I've already informed them of Mr. Icarus' and Director St. Augustine's absence, and they have expressed a desire in you giving them a tour of the facilities. Alright, thank you," he said, hanging up the phone. "He'll be right up. In the mean time, we have coffee and pastries if you're interested," he said, motioning to a table on the side of the room.

"Thank you," Dr. Director said, walking over to it and pouring herself a cup of coffee.

She sipped her coffee for a few seconds before a voice spoke, "Madam Director?" She turned to see who it was. "My name's Alfred Diego; I'm the sub-director of the lab currently on shift here at Icarus Industries. If you're ready we can begin your tour." He offered his hand.

"Dr. Elizabeth Director, head of Global Justice," she replied, shaking Alfred's hand. "We're not here to do a full inspection today; our interests are in any side-work you may be conducting which pertains to nanotechnology. In particular, nanites which are capable of deconstruction and reconstruction of buildings."

"Ah, you must mean Project Neovitae," he said, opening the door through which he'd come earlier. "We just shipped it out last night."

"I'm going to need to know who commissioned the project, and to whom it was shipped," she said, walking through the door; Ron followed close behind. "We believe that it was used in the attack on Middleton Hospital this morning."

"Middleton Hospital was attacked?" Alfred asked, concerned. "Was anyone hurt?"

"You didn't know?" Dr. Director replied. "It's been on the news all day. I'm sorry to alarm you; nobody was hurt, only property damage."

"My cable's out at home, and I've been very busy here," he said. "Please, follow me." He led them through several high-security doors into a large room full of filing cabinets. A single computer terminal sat in the center of the room. He opened the closest cabinet and pulled out a file. "Here's everything we have on the Neovitae order."

Dr. Director skimmed the file for a moment before it fell from her hand. "Ma'am?" Ron asked.

"Read the file, Ron," she said, picking it up and handing it to him. "Read me the name of the company who paid for this."

Ron read through the file, and said, "Defense Advanced Research Projects Association."

"DARPA, Ron," she said, "the US government's defense research organization. This order was purchased for use by the United States government."

* * *

Kim/Shego…

Shego dropped out of the ventilation shaft into a furnace; the propane flames danced around her as she gathered her wits. She looked around, trying to find a way out. Realizing that she was trapped, she dug her claws into the steel box around her and ripped the wall in front of her to shreds. She climbed out, brushed herself off, and shut off the gas to the furnace she'd destroyed.

Quietly she opened the door and snuck out, making her way to the elevator at the end of the hall. She drug a claw through the keypad, and the elevator pinged as it descended. Shego smiled wickedly as the door opened and she was greeted by a security officer. "Ma'am, who are you and what are you doing?" he asked, drawing his gun.

"I'm here to rob you," she replied, ripping the gun from his hand and tossing it aside. She spun around and kicked him in the head, knocking him unconscious. He fell to the floor as Shego walked into the elevator. It shot up, stopping seconds later. Shego stepped out and inspected her surroundings.

"Hello, April," said Black Suit as he manipulated the console in front of him, his back to her. She started walking over to him, and he turned around. "Stop." Shego stopped mid step, and moved to stand with her hands to her sides, her head straight forward. "It's a countermeasure we put into the drugs we had in the air of the facility the night you rescued Kim." He paused, smiling wickedly, and began circling her. Shego remained stationary. "Oops, nobody told you. We had a virus pumped through the whole building that night, one designed specifically to target your inhuman genome. It was a simple one, designed to do two things: First, it affected your mental state to be much more accommodating of the idea that you and Kim could be lovers. An understatement, that, in that it, in fact, makes you fall in love with her. Second, it programmed into your beautiful little head the notion that any order I gave you would be absolute. Unfortunately, we never could make it effective enough to override self-preservation, so I can't tell you to do something which will lead to your demise, but I can make you stand still while I torture that lovely girlfriend of yours."

The door to the room blew open in an immense explosion, sending each half of the steel double doors flying past Shego; Black Suit dove out of the way at the last second. "Not a good idea to underestimate me," Kim said, standing on the other side of the explosion.

Black Suit sighed. "You know, you really are quite annoying," he said, walking over to the emergency exit on the other side of the room. Kim moved after him, but he spun around and shouted at her, "Stop." Kim, too, found herself unable to continue her pursuit of the fleeing man, instead standing perfectly still next to Shego. He laughed an evil laugh. "It's _beautiful_, isn't it? I have both of you under my control!" He walked over to the two, swinging his arms and grinning wide. "Now, who should I toy with first, the teen heroine or my ex-partner?" He laid a hand on Shego's cheek. "No offense, Ms. Possible, it's nothing personal, but you're first because of the harm it would do to Ms. Green, here; I'm sure the psychological effect of watching your lover slowly bleed to death as she screams is going to be excruciating."

"This story of ours just gets more and more strange," Dr. Director said as she walked into the room through the doorway previously cleared by Kim. "Should I call you Mr. Blue? You do seem to be working with them again."

"Betty! Oh, Betty, Betty, it's been too long!" he said with mocking enthusiasm. "I was not expecting you; I thought you got relegated to desk duty."

"Directorship has its perks," she replied, grabbing the pistol at her hip and pointing it at him. "You realize that I'm rather compromised right now, don't you? Shoot my old friend or let him escape; neither is a palatable option. You could always give up, but you're not the type to surrender."

"No, Betty, I'm not," he replied.

Dr. Director lowered her aim and shot him in the calf. "Oops," she said, smiling cruelly.

Black Suit swore under his breath and said, "That was uncalled for." He hopped over to the medical kit on the wall next to him and began treating his wound.

"It's payback for the _last_ time we met," she said, rolling up her sleeve to reveal a scar running the length of her left forearm. "You broke it in nine places; the damage was too much for the doctors to fix, so they ended up replacing the bones with titanium rods. I could do a lot worse to you than ensure your inability to flee."

As he finished dressing his wound, he stood up slowly and, before Dr. Director could react, pulled the pins on grenades at his side. He held them out, and said, "I'm going to provide you with an even less pleasurable option than the one before. Let me leave, or we all die, right here, right now." Dr. Director holstered her gun. "Very good." He tossed the grenades at Kim and Shego's feet; smoke began to fill the room, pouring from the grenades; Kim and Shego remained still.

Dr. Director rushed in and grabbed the two by the arm, dragging them from the room. "The bastards finally got the self-preservation hitch sorted out," she said. She ran back into the room and grabbed the medical kit; she pulled a sealed syringe from the kit and unwrapped it. "This is going to hurt like hell." She stabbed the needle into Shego's heart.

Shego screamed at the top of her lungs. "God damn it!" she shouted as she pulled the needle from her chest. She stood and tried to walk, but was too shaky to get anywhere without falling down.

"Hurts like a bitch, don't it?" Dr. Director said as she unwrapped another syringe. She stabbed it into Kim's chest.

Kim shot up, yanked up syringe from her chest and tossed it aside, and pulled Shego's arm around her neck. "What the hell was that?" she demanded.

"Adrenaline," Dr. Director replied.

* * *

"Kim," Shego called from the couch in the living room, "it's on!"

Kim ran into the living room and dropped onto the couch. "Kimberly Possible: Hero or villain?" the television tabloid announcer said. "This evening, Middleton Tabloid News has received shocking footage of teen _hero_ Kim Possible carrying arch-villain Shego out of the Icarus Industries lab shortly after a 911 phone call was placed stating that the facility was under attack. Has Kim Possible finally turned to a life of crime? You heard it here first."

Kim grabbed the remote and turned off the television. "Who called it?" Shego said.

"You called it," Kim said angrily. "I am not a villain! And he used the masculine form!"

Shego pulled her phone from her pocket and opened it. "Hello?" she said. The look on her face changed from amusement to confusion. "That was Dr. von Braun's office. There's been some sort of mix-up with the blood sample thing he did."

* * *

Author's notes:

Well, here we are again. It's always such a pleasure.

Now that my obligatory reference is out of the way, on to the notes! In case you're wondering, no, I'm not writing this all in the span between postings. I have the entire story finished already, but I'm making a few revisions here and there, and I don't feel like putting it up all at once. That's a lot of work.

Anyway, I'm going to give you a heads up on what's coming, just so you can be wondering about it: The last line in the chapter is important. You see much more of this later on. Could it be...?


	9. Chapter Nine: Sweet, Sweet Lullaby

Chapter Nine: Sweet, Sweet Lullaby

A sweet, sweet lullaby,  
So gentle and kind,  
A loving memory,  
In a child's mind.

At The Hospital…

"Clones," said Shego from her state of shock. "We have clones."

"Yeah…" said Kim. "What do you mean, clones?"

"Well, not exact clones," said the very nervous Dr. von Braun, "we sort of had a bit of a mix-up."

"Kim, handle this," Shego said, rubbing her temples as she walked out the door and into the waiting room.

"Dr. von Braun, can you start from the beginning?" Kim asked.

"Well, it's complicated," Dr. von Braun began. "Do you remember those blood samples you gave me?" Kim nodded. "As you know, we also do research for couples which can't have children, and that's where the mix-up came in. We accidentally mixed up your DNA and Shego's, and one thing lead to another, and voila; you have clones, but they're four years old."

"So let me get this straight, you mixed up Shego's and my DNA with a couple's, and instead of them having kids, there's a four-year-old version of each of us?" Kim asked, skeptical.

"Not quite," Dr. von Braun said sheepishly. "We combined your DNA, and now you two have children which are equal parts each of you."

"WHAT?" came a shout from the waiting room. Shego stormed through the doors, green flames licking at the doors before fading away. "You're telling me that because of some major fuck up on your end, Kim and I have four year old children now?"

"Ye-yes," stuttered Dr. von Braun, "that is, in fact, exactly what I'm saying; you now have a son and a daughter."

Kim and Shego's jaws both dropped as they stared blankly at the doctor. "How, exactly, do you get a _son_ from two females? That's not even possible!" Shego shouted. "What, did you manipulate the samples or something? Was it some sort of genetic engineering job?"

"Well, to be perfectly frank," the doctor said, adjusting his glasses nervously, "we're not entirely sure _how_ it happened; we put the samples in the machine and told it to begin the cloning process, and two days later, when we went to get them out of the chambers, we noticed that there was a boy and a girl, and that the girl was green with red hair, and they boy was, well, normal, and had black hair."

"Does my mom know?" Kim asked, still dazed from the shock and confusion.

"No, I thought it best to tell you first," Dr. von Braun said. "I can page her if you'd like."

"Please and thank you," Kim said, wandering over to the benches and taking a seat.

Dr. von Braun picked up the handset of the phone on the wall next to him, dialed, and said, "Yes, is this Dr. Possible? Ah, good… We've got a bit of a, uh, situation in the cloning lab and it really requires your particular… Well, no, it's nothing to do with neurosurgery, it's your daughter. Well, Ann, I think you'd best come up here and see this for yourself. Alright, thank you, yes, yes, I'll see you in a minute." He hung up the phone, fumbling with it for a minute, and turned back to the two women in the room. "She'll be right up."

The room was silent save the sound of breath until Dr. Ann Possible entered, an irritated scowl on her face tempered by a level of concern. She searched the room for her daughter, who hadn't yet registered her mother's presence, and walked over to her. She laid her hand on Kim's shoulder, shocking her from her daydream trance. "Are you alright?" she asked.

"No big, just dealing," Kim replied.

Ann turned to Shego, who had taken a seat next to Kim, and looked at her queryingly. "Ask the good doctor," Shego said dryly.

Dr. Possible walked over to Dr. von Braun slowly and calmly, and said, "Hello, Rick."

"Good morning, Ann," he said, still nervous.

"Would you mind telling me what's going on?" Ann asked.

"Well, we had a bit of a mix up with your daughter and Shego, and a couple wanting children," he said. "We'd taken both couples DNA samples, Kim's and Shego's for the demonstration from when the facility had been raided, and the other couple's for the children, and-"

"Stop," Ann ordered. "Give me the short version."

"Ah, yes, of course," Ricken mumbled. "Right, well, uh…"

"Spit it out!" Ann snapped.

"Four year old children of your daughter and Shego, one male, one female," he blurted out.

Ann looked at him with much the same reaction as had Kim and Shego. "You're kidding," she said.

"Unfortunately, I'm not," Ricken said.

"How do you make that big of a-" she began, stopping mid-thought. "Did you say she has a son?" Dr. von Braun nodded. "How does that even work?"

"Well, like I told them, we really don't have any idea," Ricken said, trying to appear detached from the situation around him.

Ann stepped forward and delivered a massive right hook to his jaw, sending him to the ground. She breathed heavily for a few seconds, standing over the dazed doctor. "Ricken, I knew you were a blundering idiot, but I had no idea that even _you_ could fuck up this much. I'll see your entire division is put under perpetual scrutiny, and you'd best start looking for a new job! Now, I'm going to take my daughters to see their new children; I'd recommend you start cleaning out your office. Kim, Shego, this way." She held the door open for the two other women.

Kim and Shego stood for a moment, both in awe of the show to which they'd just been witness, and walked through the door. "Wow, Ann, I never thought I'd see you do something like that," Shego said, impressed, as Ann led the two down the hall.

"I was a boxer in college," she replied, looking back to Shego and smiling. She stopped as they reached the end of the hall, capped off by a massive door with both a keycard reader and a fingerprint scanner. Ann swiped the ID badge around her neck and laid her thumb on the scanner; the machine beeped and the door slid open almost silently, despite its size.

Kim and Shego walked in first, and were amazed by what they saw; they found themselves in a separate building entirely. They stood in the lobby of a hotel, simple but elegant, and were greeted by the woman at the front desk from afar. "Hello, Dr. Possible!" she shouted enthusiastically, waving to the guests. She was relatively tall, with soft features and pale, freckled skin, and orange hair. She wore a white lab coat over a yellow tank top and blue jeans, and had an ID card hanging from a pink cat-themed lanyard around her neck.

"Good morning, Lana," she said warmly and with a smile as they walked up to the desk. "We're here to see Dr. von Braun's children; the brother and sister."

"Oh, you must mean Elspeth and Gabriel!" Lana replied, still very enthusiastic. "I normally can't take anyone except family to see them, but nobody sent over any files on the family, and you're green, too." She pointed to Shego, bouncing up and down a little from her excitement.

Ann rolled her eyes. "Of course they didn't send anything," she said under her breath.

"What?" Lana said, her mood snapping from glee to fear. "Did I do something wrong?"

"No, no, you did everything right," Ann said gently, "it's Rick who did something wrong."

"Oh," she said, shooting back to her state of jubilation, "Dr. von Braun! I don't like him, but everyone else seems to, so I guess he's ok." She turned to Shego. "So, are you the mother or an aunt?" Her eyes got particularly wide. "Or a sister?"

"I'm the mother," Shego said calmly, trying to keep herself from growing irate at the woman's constant energy.

"You're lucky; Ellie and Gabe are great kids! Come on, I'll take you to them," Lana said, walking down the hall. Kim and Shego looked at each other, trying to decide what to make of Lana, and Ann just smiled and followed her down the hall. Kim and Shego, realizing the others had left, sprinted to catch up. Lana stopped and turned to the door next to her.

"Lana," Ann said, putting her hand on Lana's shoulder, "are you taking your medication?"

Lana nodded frantically, "Yep, yep, yep; I take it every morning!"

"Ok, I want you to start taking two a day, at least until we can schedule you for surgery," Ann said. "Apparently the medication isn't working as well as we thought it would, and the tumor is growing."

Lana stared at her blankly for a few seconds, then nodded and opened the door by which she was standing. Again, Kim and Shego were the first to enter, and again what they saw struck them to awe. They were in a child's bedroom; toys and clothes littered the floor, the window, which lit the room, was covered in doodles, as were the walls, and in the corners on either side of the door rested beds.

Above the bed on the left, occupied by a boy, hung a sign, drawn by a child, which read 'Gabriel Alexi'. Likewise, above the bed on the right, occupied by a girl of pale green hue, hung a sign, drawn by a child, which read 'Elspeth Ava'.

Kim and Shego stood silent in pure, amazed wonder. Shego walked over to Elspeth and sat on her bed. Trancelike, she ran her fingers through her daughter's red hair. Elspeth stirred and turned over to face the person who'd woken her from her sleep. "Mommy?" she asked softly, still half asleep.

"I'm here, honey," she said, tears filling her eyes.

"Why are you crying, mommy?" she asked, a look of tired worry on her face.

"I'm just happy to see you," she said, trying to keep her voice from cracking. "Go back to sleep."

"Ok," Elspeth said, turning over to face the wall.

Shego continued running her fingers through her daughter's hair, and softly sang, "Goodnight, my angel, time to close your eyes, and save these questions for another day…"

Gabriel turned over and said, "Hi mom."

Kim turned around and looked at the smiling young boy in front of her. "Hey Gabe," she said, smiling back. "Looks like naptime's over."

"Play with us, mommy!" Elspeth insisted, waking herself up wit a stretch.

"I'll tell you what; Kimmy can stay here and play with you two while I go get ready to take you home," Shego said. "Dr. Possible, I need to speak to you." Kim took a seat on the floor as the two walked out of the room.

"Of course," Ann replied.

Shego waited for the door to close before she spoke again. "We need somewhere private to talk," she said.

Ann looked at her gravely and with a note of irritation, and led her down the hall to a conference room. Once inside, she said, "What's going on?"

"You should sit," Shego said, taking a seat at the table and spinning from side to side nervously in the office chair.

Ann grabbed the chair and jerked it toward her; she hunched over Shego and growled, "Something's wrong with Kim."

Shego, shocked by the rather drastic change of attitude, couldn't help but speak bluntly. "She was abducted by a CIA team," she said. "I went in to rescue her, and they infected me with a virus designed to make me fall in love with her."

"What affect did it have on Kim?" Ann demanded.

"I don't know yet," Shego replied. "Not entirely, at least. Her personality is more or less the same, but she's lost control of some of her impulses. She is getting better, though; closer to her old self."

"How much time have you spent with her since you rescued her?" Ann asked, taking a seat.

"A lot," Shego replied, leaning forward. "I've been with her almost constantly."

Ann leaned back, letting the news sink in. "You love her?" she asked.

"Yeah," Shego replied simply. "I think so. I want to believe I do."

"Good," Ann said. "As of now, you're to be with her every second of every day until I'm convinced that she's capable of being on her own." She stood up. "Maybe you can repay me for everything you did to her over the years."

"Ann?" she asked. "Don't tell her that you know. She needs some sort of normal in her life."

* * *

Shego's Apartment…

The door swung open and Gabriel and Elspeth ran in, overjoyed to see their new home. Gabriel immediately ran from room to room, exploring the house. "Can we watch TV, mommy?" Elspeth asked.

"Sure," Kim and Shego said almost in unison. They looked at each other. "Who's…"

Elspeth caught on to the confusion. "Mommy Kim, come watch TV with me!" she insisted.

"Mommy Shego," Gabriel shouted from the bedroom, "I want some juice." He ran out of the room with the almost-empty bottle of Scotch in his hand.

Shego ran over and snatched the bottle from his hand as he began to unscrew the lid. "That's not juice," she said, leading him into the kitchen. She pulled her cell phone from her pocket and dialed. "Ann? Hi, Shego, yeah, we need you to pick something up from the bakery to celebrate. Thanks." She put her phone back in her pocket and opened the cupboard, pulling out a small glass. She stowed the bottle of Scotch in the freezer and removed a jug of orange juice from the fridge, filling the glass and returning the jug.

"Thank you," Gabriel said, taking the glass from Shego. He ran into the living room.

"No running…" Shego began, shouting at first but letting her voice soften when it became clear that Gabriel was ignoring her, "…with a drink." She walked back into the living room and tapped Kim on the shoulder. Kim looked up at her, and she signaled for her to follow.

Kim stood up, put the television remote on the table, and followed Shego into their bedroom. "We need to child-proof," Shego said.

"No big; how hard can it be?" Kim asked. Her eyes opened as wide as possible as the volume of the television maxed out, and the sounds of cheap porno music filled the small apartment. Kim ran into the living room, dove over the couch, rolled across the table on which she had landed, and shut off the television before the program could actually start.

"No big?" Shego asked, grin wide, as she strolled casually out into the living room.

Kim stood up and turned to Shego. "Why didn't you tell me you had adult channels?" she asked, offended.

* * *

An Hour Later…

"Surprise!" Ann shouted as she walked through the door, a giant cake in her arms. Shego closed the door behind her and took the cake from her, carrying it into the kitchen.

"What's this?" Kim asked.

"They need a birthday," Shego said. "What better day than today, the day they came home?"

"What about presents?" Kim asked.

"I've got it covered," Shego said. There was a knock at the door. "Don't you just love when things happen at the right time." She walked over and opened the door, and two very large men in black tank tops walked in carrying several bags in each hand. They sat the bags down next to the couch; one man left, the other walked over to Shego and held out his hand without a word. Shego pulled a wad of cash out of her pocket and handed it to him. "Thanks." The man shrugged in response and walked out, thumbing through the cash.

Kim walked over to the bags and began to dig through them. "They're wrapped," she said.

"Very astute observation," Shego said, walking back into the kitchen. "Do me a favor and get the presents set up on the table. Ann, be a dear and help me get this cake cut up."

Kim removed the presents from the bag and placed them on the coffee table as Ann assisted Shego in slicing the oversized cake into appropriately-sized pieces. Ann walked out of the kitchen with two plates, each with a slice of cake, and a wad of paper towels; she was followed closely by Shego, carrying three plates and a handful of forks. As they handed out the cake, Shego pulled a couple of candles from her pocket and stuck one in each of her children's cakes; she lit them with her hand. "Make a wish and blow out the candles," Kim said.

Gabriel blew out the candle instantly; Elspeth waited for a moment, considering carefully her wish, before doing the same. Kim, Shego, and Ann applauded. "Can we open presents now?" Gabriel asked through a mouthful of cake.

"Wipe your hands first," Ann said, handing Elspeth and him a paper towel each. Gabriel took the paper towel and cleaned his hands before jumping out of his seat to find the largest present with his name on it. Satisfied that he'd found the biggest one of the bunch, standing at over half his height, he attempted to pick it up off the floor. Finding himself unable to, he tried to push it, but to no avail. He looked pleadingly at Shego, who said, "Open it there, Gabe."

Voraciously he tore at the paper until he could make out the contents of the box. "You got them spy equipment?" Kim whispered to Shego.

"They'll love it," Shego whispered back.

"Cool!" Gabriel shouted as he finally managed to conquer the packaging. He pulled a remote-control car out of the now-open box, shaking off the packing peanuts. He leaned into the box and pulled out another car, two remotes, and a large box of batteries.

"Now one of those is for your sister," Shego said.

"Why didn't you just get her one of her own?" Kim asked.

"They only come in sets of two," Shego said

"Your turn, Elspeth," Kim said.

Elspeth put her cake down on what little of the table was uncovered and walked around the table, resting her hand on several of her gifts before finally picking one; Shego watched her actions intently. It was long, small, delicate, and jingled a little as Elspeth carried it back over to the couch. She looked at Shego and smiled almost knowingly before carefully opening it. From the wrapping she pulled a small box, and from the small box she pulled a necklace sized to her. "Thank you, mommy," she said, hugging Shego before inspecting it. On a small chain hung a pendant; it was gold surrounding a large teardrop sapphire.

"It's a GPS locator beacon," Shego said. "In case you ever get lost, we can find you." She leaned over to Kim and whispered, "I got Gabe a dragon-shaped beacon surrounding a ruby, but it's not finished yet."

* * *

That Evening…

"That's a side of you I never thought I'd see," Kim said as she crawled into bed.

"Everyone deserves a happy birthday," Shego said fondly without looking up from her book. "Gabe and Ellie all tucked in?"

"Sleeping comfortably on the couches," Kim replied. "You were actually nice to my mom."

"I'm trying to be civil," Shego replied.

"Are you sure you're alright?" Kim asked.

"I'm fine," Shego reassured her, "it's just been a strange day."

"It's more than that," Kim said, lowering Shego's book. "You didn't even sound like yourself today."

Shego calmly placed her bookmark in her book and put it on the nightstand. She turned to Kim and said, "I'm fine. I'm just… I'm fine." She kissed Kim on the cheek and turned over. "I might be a little strange for a while, that's all." She shut off the light and went to sleep.

* * *

Author's Notes:

To be perfectly honest, I'm not entirely happy with this chapter. Originally, it was two, but when I couldn't figure out most of the second one, I just put it in with the first. I mean, it flows well enough, but there's something about this that's just nagging at me. Anyway, as always, reviews are welcome and encouraged, particularly if you have some good advice (or even something you'd like to see me put in; no guarantees, but I might worm it into this story or the next in the series).


	10. Chapter Ten: Fugue

Chapter Ten: Fugue;

The Dual Self; The Rewired Mind

Shego brushed forcefully the hair from her face as she sat up in her bed. "Kim!" she called. "Where are you?"

"She's not here," replied a selfsame voice.

"Who the hell are you?" Shego demanded, turning to look at the doorway from which the voice had come.

"I'm you," the voice replied. She stepped through the door into the bedroom, and was, with the exception of skin tone, an exact inversion of Shego; a bright pink and white battle suit, white hair, a faint pink glow around her hands, even her eyes were light pink. Her skin, in contrast to the direct inversion of the rest of her appearance, was a dark tan. "For the sake of simplicity, just call me Gene. You've always liked that name, right?"

"Who, the hell, are you?" Shego demanded again, throwing off the covers and revealing her body clad in her own black and green suit. She stood up and stormed over to Gene, grabbing her by the collar of her suit.

Gene rolled her eyes, grabbed Shego's arm, and pulled it off of her. "What's the last thing you remember before waking up? No, don't answer, I already know. You went to the doctor in an attempt to circumvent the prescribed course of treatment consisting of an antiviral agent and, here's a shocker, proper therapy, and he hooked you up to a machine which is designed to split apart the major aspects of a person's psyche, usually used in the treatment and reintegration of multiple personalities. So, here we are, you being the person you've been for the last however long it's been, and me being everything good and happy and loving inside you; I'm the part of you which you've tried to ignore and keep from coming out, which is exactly what the virus was designed to do. Bring me out, that is."

"So all I have to do is kick your ass until you're gone for good?" Shego asked, preparing to fight.

"I'm not going to go away easily," Gene replied, taking a defensive stance. Shego lunged at her, and she dove out of the way. "I am half of you; not an aberration or a construct, but half of the whole that is April Elizabeth Hargrove." Shego dove at her again, and again Gene dodged. "I may have little in the way of influence in the life of Shego, but I _am_ the driving force behind April. If you kill me, or confine me, or do anything but accept me as a part of yourself, you will lose half of yourself."

Shego stood and leaned against the wall. "What makes you think I want you?" she asked.

"Do you love Kim?" Gene asked.

"What kind of fucking question is that for a fight? Of course I do," Shego replied with rage.

"No, you don't," Gene said. "_I_ love Kim. _I_ love, and _I_ care, and _I_ am the reason you never killed her when she was your enemy."

"Bitch!" Shego shouted, again diving at Gene. Gene stepped to the side, dodging a swing aimed for her head, and pushed Shego's arm toward the ground, knocking her off balance.

"You are force and I am focus," Gene said. "You are resistance and I am flow. Without me, you can't hit anyone with enough wherewithal to consider dodging, and without you, I can't strike hard enough to do more than to maybe leave a bruise, if I can do even that."

"You are weakness!" Shego shouted, spinning around in a leg sweep.

"I am compassion and consideration and morality," Gene replied, jumping over her and landing on the bed. Taking a seat, she continued, "I am that which gives your strength purpose; I give you reason to fight. I make you stronger."

"I fight for the sake of fighting," Shego said, standing up. "If I don't care about anyone, nobody can use that against me."

"True, but without caring for anyone, all you are doing is fighting for your own sake, and while that will allow you to use all your physical strength, you miss out on the greatest empowerment you can achieve," Gene replied.

"Let me guess, seeing people I care about in danger will awaken some sort of new super power in me?" Shego asked. "I hate to break it to you, but this is all there is." Shego lit her hands.

"You are somewhat close on your guess," Gene replied. "Not some sort of super power, but when you fight just for yourself, as you are now, you're only fighting with half of your being against an enemy fighting with the whole of theirs." Shego ran over to her and began wildly throwing blows; Gene countered each one in turn. "You would be far better off living how you wish if I was never here, but because I am, there is no way for you to fully be rid of me; I will always be nagging in the back of your mind. Accept me and fight as a whole once again, like we did years ago!"

"Never!" Shego shouted as she continued her fight. "You make me weak! You make me think I can trust others and rely on them, when I can only rely on myself!"

"No, you can't fully rely on anyone else," Gene said as she again parried each of Shego's attacks. "However, learning that is part of becoming an adult; never trust anyone with anything you can't do on your own if they don't come through for you, unless you absolutely have to."

"That's an incredibly cynical thing to come from you," Shego jabbed, jumping backward. "Why the sudden change of heart? Am I wearing you down already?"

"It's not a change of heart, and no, you're not wearing me down," Gene replied. "It's reality. Just because you're cynical by nature doesn't mean that I can't be when I choose to; that's part of being pragmatic, which you certainly are not. You take whatever you want by force, and to hell with anyone who gets in your way."

"Damn straight," Shego interjected.

"I, on the other hand, am the reasonable one, willing to give up that which I cannot get without harming others," Gene continued. "But I never let that take away my hope. Never. Hope springs eternal, which gives me a power that you lack."

"I won't ever give up, either," Shego said.

"It's more than not giving up," Gene countered. "You don't give up because you're stubborn and can't admit that you're wrong or in over your head, whereas I don't give up because I believe that there will always be a chance, that I can always win if given enough time; I'm patient, you're not. I will fight until I open you up enough to let me in, no matter what it takes; from a million cuts I will pour into your body, even if you kill me."

"Like that'll ever happen," Shego sneered.

"You'd be surprised how easy it is, once the proper methods are in place," Gene said, standing up and walking over to her. Gently, she touched Shego on the cheek. Shego grabbed her and slammed her into the mirror, shattering it. "I hope you're not superstitious."

"I'll kick Karma's ass if it ever tried anything," Shego replied. Gene rolled her eyes and grabbed a shard of mirror, swinging it quickly. It sliced into Shego's leg with ease. Enraged, Shego tossed Gene across the room and through the window; Gene landed in the grass outside. "What the fuck?"

"First off, superstition and karma are two different things, and not just one mass of histrionics for the weak minded. Second, this is all in your head, which means it's all in my head, which means I have as much control over this world as you do," Gene explained. "Well, maybe more, as you're not too terribly bright, intellect being a sign of weakness and all." Shego growled and dove out the window, landing on Gene, who promptly used the momentum to throw her off and into the trunk of a tree. She grabbed the shard of mirror, which moulded itself into a dagger in her hand. She held it backwards as Shego charged her, parrying each of Shego's attacks with the blade.

Shego snarled and grabbed Gene's hands, and overpowering her, brought them together over her head. Holding them with one hand, Shego grabbed Gene's neck with the other, and lit her hand, scorching Gene's neck and face. When she was satisfied, she threw her counterpart to the ground.

Gene coughed and motioned for Shego to come in close. Cautiously, Shego moved in closer, keeping some distance for safety. "Thanks," Gene whispered.

"Thanks for killing you?" Shego asked, perplexed and still irate. Gene smiled. Slowly, her body dissolved into a pink mist, which floated and swirled in the air around Shego. Suddenly, it began to stream into every cut on Shego's body.

* * *

Shego tore the helmet from her head and threw it across the room. "You've got a sick idea of therapy, doc," she said.

"One must confront their demons," Dr. Ian Metric replied. "Or, in your case, your angels."

* * *

Author's Notes:

Not sure what to say about this one, other than that it's Shego's internal conflict externalized for us to see. How does the end bit of the joining of the two work? Hell if I know. I admit that the ending is pretty much just tacked on, but I honestly couldn't think of anything better to write. I still can't, which is why I'm still using it. Uh... Shego was tricked into letting it happen. Yeah, let's go with that.

I bid you adieu until we meet again, so basically until you start reading the next chapter in about 20 seconds.


	11. Chapter Eleven: Wicked Sick

ADVANCE WARNING:

This chapter is why I gave the story an "M" rating. Not because people get shot or brainwashed or anything, but because of the first part of this chapter.

Shall we play a game?

* * *

Chapter Eleven: Wicked Sick

Warning:  
"Wicked Sick" is not another way of saying "awesome".  
"Wicked Sick" is that which is wicked and sick.

Somewhere…

Ian screamed as loud as he could; his cries of terror were muffled by the tape covering his mouth, his attempts to escape rendered futile by the bindings which kept him on the table. He shook his head violently as a bare-chested Sid Boreal slowly walked toward him, the steel baseball bat gripped loosely in his left hand dragging on the ground behind him. "I hope you don't mind, but I prefer to work with music," Sid said, pulling a remote control from his pocket and pressing the play button. A solo violin started, and Ian sung along, "When the devil is too busy, and death's a bit too much, they call on me by name, you see, for my special touch. To the gentlemen I'm Miss Fortune, to the ladies I'm Sir Prize, but call me by any name, anyway it's all the same. I'm the fly in your soup, I'm the pebble in your shoe, I'm the pea beneath your bed, I'm a bump on every head, I'm the peel on which you slip, I'm a pin in every hip, I'm the thorn in your side, makes you wriggle and writhe. And it's so easy when you're evil. This is the life, you see; the Devil tips his hat to me. I do it all because I'm evil, and I do it all for free... Your tears are all the pay I'll ever need." Ian looked at him with a look of desperate confusion.

Ian screamed again, tears streaming down his face. "It's not like it's personal or anything," he said as he lifted the bat above his head and brought it down on Ian's right ankle. Again Ian screamed, again struggling to escape; again his attempts were rendered futile. Again he lifted the bat above his head, and this time he brought it down on Ian's left ankle.

Ian tried to scream, but found his voice no longer under his control. He lifted his head to see his attacker, but found himself unable to turn away from the sight of his broken and bleeding ankles; his feet hung over the edge of the table, limp and dripping with his blood, one all but severed from the force of the blow. "By now you've probably lost your voice," Sid said. "Pity, I always found this more fulfilling with the screams." He spun the bat in his hand, and before Ian could turn away he dropped it with massive force across his shins. The crack of bone ensued, and Ian's head dropped to the table. Sid pulled a small vial out of his pocket, opened it, and shoved it up Ian's nose.

Ian shot back to life. "Sorry about that, mate; I have to keep you awake, orders and all that," Sid said. "It's for the video." Ian kept his head down, whimpering into his makeshift gag. Sid lifted again the bat, bringing it down on Ian's knees. Twice again the bat went up, and twice again the bat came down, this time on his calves. Ian panted through his nose, long past the point at which his voice had given out, a nauseous look of acceptance in his eye.

"For the record, not that it'll matter in five minutes or so," Sid said, walking to the other end of the table, "I'm not actually enjoying this. I can't say that it bothers me, though." He swung the bat once more, shattering Ian's wrists and all but severing his hands. "Nothing bothers me." He brought the bat above his head again. "I'm a psychopath, you see." He delivered the bat onto Ian's forearms. "I'm incapable of empathy or sympathy." He raised the bat again. "Thanks to my employer, I can feel all those positive emotions." He swung with particular force, hitting Ian's elbows. "Nothing negative, but everything positive. Sometimes I wonder if it was intentional." He quickly raised and lowered the bat, breaking Ian's arms. "Not that I'd mind, lacking negative emotions and all."

The music changed as he threw the bloodied bat aside and opened a drawer below the table. He pulled a scalpel from the drawer and walked down to Ian's ankles. "Ah, Bolero," he said, drawing the scalpel across what flesh remained connecting Ian's feet to his legs after the initial assault; blood sprayed across his chest as he severed the artery. He held the foot as it detached, and set it next to Ian's still-trapped leg. A quick slice severed the other foot, and he placed it next to the leg to which it had previously belonged.

Next, he drew the knife across Ian's right knee and down the top of his leg, tracing the bone as he went. "Personally," he said as he began to cut the muscle from the bone, "I don't see the need to cut out your bones while you're still awake, but orders are orders." As he finished the lower half of Ian's shin, he removed the snapped bone from the leg and placed it above the foot, recreating the anatomy; Ian's muscles twitched aimlessly without the bone structure to control them. With a few more precise slices he had the upper half of Ian's right shin removed and located above the other. He placed the kneecap to the side.

Whistling along to the song, he moved to the other side of the table and repeated the process on Ian's other leg, wiping his face clean as the blood sprays shot out of his victim's leg. He advanced to the thigh, being careful to avoid the femoral artery as he filleted. When he finished both thighs, he wiped the blood from his face one final time and checked Ian's pulse. "Lucky bastard," he said, putting the knife onto the table, "you died before I got to your chest."

* * *

The Crime Scene…

Kim stared at the snow on the television in silence, her gut retching from the display of inhuman barbarism she'd just witnessed. Shego stumbled into the room, arms crossed over her stomach; she was more green than usual. "Tell me you didn't watch the whole thing," Shego moaned, sitting as close to Kim as possible. "Tell me you did not watch the whole damn thing."

"I… Couldn't stop…" Kim said, her empty gaze locked on the screen. "I wanted to, but I couldn't stop watching it." She clutched her knees to her chest. "It was so familiar; safe and familiar."

"Excuse me, ma'am?" a man asked, sticking his head into the room. "There's someone here by the name of Dr. Elizabeth Director; she's insisting on seeing both of you right away."

"Come on, Princess," Shego said, helping the horrified Kim Possible to her feet. The two left the small side-room in which the television and video had been found and re-entered the main facility; crime scene technicians and detectives shuffled around, scouring the room for any trace of evidence as to the identity of the victim or his butcher. "Dr. Director, what are you doing here?"

"You knew the victim, didn't you?" Dr. Director asked.

"Have you seen the video?" Kim asked, still in something of a trance state.

"No," Dr. Director replied. "Is that an answer to my question?"

"Dr. Ian Metric," Shego said. "He was my doctor."

"Don't watch the video," Kim said, sitting on the floor. "Don't watch the video…"

"Is she alright?" Dr. Director asked.

"Watch the video and find out," Shego said, lifting Kim to her feet again. "Kim's lost it and I ran out two minutes in, but I'm sure it won't bother someone of your _experience_." She carried Kim out of the room.

Dr. Director watched them silently until they were out of the building. "Who here has seen the video?" she shouted.

An officer walked up to her and said, "Other than those two, the only person who had seen anything on it is now recovering from tossing his guts."

"Take me to him," she replied. "And for the love of God don't let anyone watch it."

* * *

Global Justice Headquarters…

"Mr. Stoppable?" Dr. Director asked as she walked into his office. Ron turned around to the sight of Dr. Director holding out a photograph. He took it and looked it over. "Do you know that man?"

"Sid Boreal," Ron replied, tossing the picture into the waste basket next to his desk. "He's the one who captured Joanne and me."

"That's what I was afraid of," Dr. Director replied. "Walk with me. And grab your coat; you might need it."

Ron stood up and pulled his coat from the hanger next to him. He carried it on his arm as he followed Dr. Director into the main lobby. "What's this about?"

"You and I need to talk privately," she said, walking out the front door and up to a car which was parked immediately outside; she sat in the driver's seat. Ron climbed in the passenger's seat, and as he shut the door Dr. Director floored it, sending them racing away. "We're going to hit them. We're going to hit them so hard that whoever spawned them in the darkest pits of Hell will feel it. They've partnered with a rogue organization inside the CIA, and we're going to hit them as well." Dr. Director's voice filled with seething hatred. "We're going to destroy their entire operation at once; every man, woman, and child willingly working with them will feel my wrath."

"Ma'am?" Ron asked, shocked.

She took a deep breath and continued. "This is going to be strictly off-book, and you're not to speak to anyone about it, including for Ms. Possible and Shego. Is that understood?" Ron nodded, mildly unnerved with Dr. Director's sudden and dramatic change of attitude once again. "I'm going to fill them in on it later, but right now you and I are going to go see an old enemy."

* * *

Worldwide Evil Empire Headquarters…

Dr. Director aimed her .45 caliber revolver at the man at the front desk and said, "Call Sheldon, tell him Betty is here to see him."

The nervous guard did as he was instructed and activated the intercom, saying, "Excuse the interruption, sir, but someone by the name of Betty is here to see you."

"Get your sorry ass up here, Sheldon!" she shouted, remaining otherwise composed.

A few seconds later a hatch opened in the floor and Gemini appeared on a lift ascending from below. "What are you doing here, Betty?" he demanded.

"As much as I hate to admit this," she said, holstering her revolver, "I need your help. I need you to pull a job which can't be tracked back to Global Justice."

"Betty is coming to _me_ for help; her big brother?" Gemini asked, grinning wickedly from ear to ear. "Oh, happy day! What can I do for you, little sister?"

"I need you to take out some CIA facilities," she replied.

"I do love attacking the CIA," he said, stroking his chin thoughtfully. "What do I get out of it?"

"You can keep anything you find except for what we're trying to get," Dr. Director offered.

"And what's that?" Gemini asked, intrigued. "Anything you could want must be just as valuable to me."

"I can't tell you that, but I assure you that what we're going after, we want to stop, not use," Dr. Director replied.

The three stood in silence as Gemini contemplated the situation. Finally he broke the silence. "Ok," he said, "I'm in."

"That's it?" Ron asked, taken slightly off guard for the third time that day.

"What, were you expecting some big fight scene or something?" Gemini asked.

"This is how the world works behind the scenes, Ron," Dr. Director said. "Kim was always a little too high-strung for diplomacy of this nature."

"Now, would either of you like something to eat? We just finished setting up our new food court," Gemini said invitingly. "We've got Buenos Nacho!"

* * *

Somewhere…

Kim screamed as loud as she could; her cries of terror were muffled by the tape covering her mouth, her attempts to escape rendered futile by the bindings which kept her on the table. She shook her head violently as a bare-chested Shego slowly walked toward her, a steel baseball bat gripped loosely in her left hand dragging behind her. "I hope you don't mind, but I prefer to work with music," Shego said, pulling a remote control from her pocket and pressing the play button.

Hand drums started strong, fading out and back in over the course of a few seconds; trumpets played a Latin-style theme over hand drums. "I wish a falling star could fall forever and sparkle through the clouds and stormy weather," Shego sang with the music. "And in the darkness of the night, the star would shine a glimmering light and hover above our love. Please hold me close and whisper that you love me, and promise that your dreams are only of me. When you are near, everything's clear, Earth is a beautiful heaven. Always I hope that we follow the star and be forever floating above. I know a falling star can't fall forever, but let's never stop falling in love."

* * *

Kim gasped for breath, having just relived the video she'd seen the day before in its entirety in the form of a dream. "What's going on?" Shego demanded. Kim's only reply was her heaving for breath. "Princess! Hey, princess, relax; it was only a dream!" Slowly Kim calmed down, until she stopped moving almost entirely. "Jesus Christ, what was that?"

"Another nightmare," Kim replied; she averted Shego's gaze. "The video. I was on the table, and you…"

The door creaked open and a drowsy Elspeth stumbled her way into the room, tears running down her cheeks. Shego looked over to her daughter, and asked, "What's wrong, honey?"

"You killed mommy," she cried, climbing onto the bed.

* * *

Author's Note:

I thought a Saw reference in the warning was appropriate. Both Sid and the bad dude from Saw brutally and graphically butcher people casually, it's just the manner in which they do it and the motives which are different. Honestly, I hated those movies. They're not horror, they're gore movies. They shock you with mindless amounts of gore with no real plot line to back it up, which is the key difference between a gory horror movie and a horrible gore movie. You see, I use this as a means for showing you how bad the bad guys are. I mean, they're torturing and killing in a most brutal and sadistic manner an innocent doctor who has only been seen once, for an alliance that he doesn't even have; Shego came to him, and he treated her, nothing more. For the record, that's the kind of thing that Kim was forced to watch while she was being held captive. Imagine having to watch something like that for hours, days, on end. Evil shitheads are evil, indeed.

Also, Sid was originally going to be singing the song Shego sings in the last scene, just so it would make sense for Shego to sing it, but I decided that him singing Voltaire would be more appropriate. I had thought about having him sing the Nyan Cat song, just for the near-obscene contrast, as well. Thing is, then I'd actually have to listen to it. That's not going to happen.

And now the KiGo Kids' powers start to manifest… Who gets what? Elspeth has the color (and, according to the information in chapter six, an increased healing rate), but what does Gabe get? And what's up with Elspeth's nightmare? Well, I've hinted at it before, so you might be able to figure it out, but if you can't, fret not, as I'll have the next chapter for you in a week.

As always, reviews, recommendations, suggestions, words of encouragement, slights against me, or memes of any sort, mutated or otherwise, are welcome and encouraged. Seriously, I want to know what you guys and gals think, as maybe it'll give me inspiration for a chapter. I need inspiration. I don't think up a plot and lay it out all logically and go from start to finish more or less in the order in which I designed the layout. I get an idea and then I write until it runs its course, then I get another idea and do the same thing, over and over until I decide where I want to stop, and then I just arrange everything in an order which makes sense. So, yeah, please, if there's something you want to see happen, tell me and I might like it enough to use it.

And now a word from the sponsors: ALWAYS ANGRY! ALL THE TIME! (That's a hint as to the next story (not KP-related in ANY way) that I'm going to be putting up.)


	12. Chapter Twelve: The Kids Aren't Alright

Chapter Twelve: The Kids Aren't Alright

If you could read minds,  
Would you really want to?

Shego's Apartment…

"What do you mean, you can't help?" Shego shouted at Ann; Ann continued examining Elspeth in the living room. "I thought you were a neurologist!"

"I'm a neurosurgeon," Ann corrected. "There's really not much I can tell you without the proper diagnostic tools." Ann kissed her granddaughter on the forehead as she finished the looking-over and stood up. She looked at the clock and sighed. "It's five o'clock in the morning; put Elspeth back to bed for an hour and we'll go to the hospital after the shift change." Shego frowned and took her daughter's hand, leading her to the office-turned-bedroom.

* * *

The Hospital…

Ann led Elspeth into an examination room; Kim and Shego remained seated in the waiting room. "Good morning, Dr. Possible," the doctor said. "I thought you had the day off." He was tall and of average build, with short, brown hair and a Jersey accent.

"I do," Ann replied. "I'm here on a personal matter. Dave, you're the best neurologist in the country, and," Ann paused, "_we_ think that there might be something wrong with my granddaughter."

"I didn't know you were a grandmother," Dave laughed. He took a closer look at Elspeth, and grew more and more confused. "Wait… Your granddaughter? She's, what, four years old? That means Kim would have been fourteen? Fifteen?" Dave looked Elspeth over again. "And she's green."

"Biologically she's four years old," Ann said, lifting Elspeth onto the examination table. "Physically she's eight days."

Dave almost fell backward at the announcement. "How do you age four years in eight days?" he asked. Ann raised her brow. "You don't… Oh, no. Ricken's work? She's one of them?"

"She's a human being," Ann insisted.

"What about the skin color?" Dave asked, beginning a preliminary examination. "The only person I can even think of with green skin is that supervillain Shego, and that's just crazy." Ann cleared her throat, and Dave looked up at her. "That _is_ crazy, right?"

"Absolutely," Ann said. Dave let out a sigh of relief. "That doesn't mean it's not true."

"So Kim and Shego are…" Dave began, waiting for Ann to finish his sentence.

"Together?" Ann asked. Dave nodded. "I don't know. I think so. I hope so. If not, I don't want to be around when Kim finds out. But the fact remains that this child, my granddaughter, belongs to Kim and Shego."

"Well, if that's all it is," Dave said, trying to hide his discomfort. "I just wonder what we've gotten ourselves into. What's the problem?"

"She had the same dream as Kim, at the same time Kim was having it," Ann replied.

"Well, I've been wanting to try out my new toy," Dave replied, pulling a wire-covered hat out of the cupboard and placing it on Elspeth's head. "Neural Scanning Magnetic Resonance Imagery; it scans and maps neural activity unlike anything we've seen before." He connected the device to a display on the counter and watched the images intensely. "You know, when I woke up this morning, I said to myself, 'Self, this is going to be one hell of a day.'"

"What're you talking about?" Ann inquired impatiently.

"Activity in parts of her brain in which there shouldn't be that particular type while she's awake," he said, pointing to parts of the image of Elspeth's brain. "Some of the glands even seem to be restocking their supplies of neurochemicals."

"Dave," Ann said, looking up from the screen, "that's impossible. Basic human biology requires you to be in REM sleep."

"I don't suppose you could get Kim and Shego in here sometime?" Dave asked.

Ann stepped out the door and said, "Kimmie, dear; Shego? We need you in here." A few seconds later the two walked into the exam room. "Dr. Isaacson needs to speak to the two of you."

"Uh, hi," he said, mildly surprised, "call me Dave. I need the two of you to do me a favor."

* * *

In the MRI Room…

"Ugh," Shego said as the MRI tray slid into the machine, "I hate these things."

"Claustrophobic?" Kim asked, laying on another MRI tray.

"Not exactly," Shego said. "Bad memories."

"Aw, the big, bad machine won't do anything to you," Kim joked.

"It's not the machine I'm worried about," she replied. "No offense, doc."

"None taken," he replied, activating the MRI machines in which the two women found themselves; Elspeth sat on the counter in the observation room, still wearing the hat, playing with the wires which now hung loosely. "Oh, this is very interesting. Here, look," he pointed to Shego's MRI scan. "It's active, just like Elspeth's. Shego, how long can you stay awake at a time?"

"I don't know the limit," Shego said, "but I've done a week and a half on caffeine and meditation before."

"That's truly impressive," Dave said. "And there," he pointed to activity in Shego's brain, "that shouldn't be active. The dream centers…" He looked at Kim's brain. "Both of them, all three of them, have activity in parts of the brain normally only active while dreaming. Elspeth's activity matches Kim's, but not Shego's." He turned to Ann. "There was another one, wasn't there?"

"Gabriel; he's staying with a family friend," Ann said, looking closer at the scans. "You're thinking he's got it too?"

Dave smiled at Elspeth and asked, "Elspeth, did you have any other dreams last night?" Elspeth nodded sleepily. "Could you tell me about it?"

"I was playing with my brother and we could do magic!" she said, shaking herself from her drowsy state with the excitement of the story. "His hands could glow green!"

Shego shot up, and there was a dull thud as her head hit the machine. "God damn it!" she cursed as she rubbed her head. "Pull me out of here!" Both MRI trays slid out, and Shego ran to the door, Kim walking quickly behind. "Gabriel's hands were glowing green?"

"And mine were glowing white!" she said happily.

* * *

Shego's Apartment…

"I want mommy Shego!" Gabriel shouted, throwing his travel bag loaded with toys at Ron.

"She's busy, Gabriel," Ron replied, calmly plucking the bag from the air as it flew. "She should be home soon."

"She's at the hospital with Elspeth and mommy Kim!" Gabriel replied. "I want her to make me breakfast!"

"Well, I'll make you breakfast," Ron replied, standing up.

"No!" Gabriel insisted. "I want mommy Shego!"

"I told you," Ron said, starting to get annoyed, "I can't get her to come home right now; she's very busy."

"I," Gabriel said as he stood. "Want," his arms shot to his side. "Mommy!" his hands ignited.

"Uh oh," Rufus said as he scampered out of the bathroom. He turned around and ran back in, shutting the door securely behind him.

"Oh come on!" Ron shouted. Gabriel raised his hand and threw a ball of green plasma at him; Ron quickly jumped out of the way. The errant blast collided with the television, sending sparks everywhere and bursting most of the light bulbs in the room. "That's not supposed to happen!"

"Mommy Shego! Now!" Gabriel screamed. He launched another blast at Ron.

"Bad! Bad Gabriel!" Ron yelled as he dodged the second blast; it collided with the couch, igniting it. The fire alarm screeched, and Gabriel launched a blast at it without taking his eyes off of his real target; the fire alarm exploded. "Stop blowing things up!"

"Mommy Shego!" Gabriel screamed again. He launched blast after blast in rapid succession as Ron ran around the room, trying to avoid getting hit.

The action stopped as the two combatants heard the key turn in the lock. They stood in silence as they watched the door swing open. They stood in silence as they watched as Shego, Ann, and Kim, who was carrying Elspeth, walked into the house. They stood in less than silence as the jaws dropped.

Gabriel ran into his room as quickly as he could, while Ron attempted to explain the situation. "You didn't tell me he could do that!" he shouted in his own defense, walking backward as Shego stormed toward him, her hands glowing. He stopped as he ran into the wall.

"I'll let you two sort this out," Ann said, walking out. Kim sighed and carried Elspeth into her room.

"I didn't _know_ he could do that until today!" she shouted back, holding her lit hand inches from his face. "He can throw plasma, Elspeth can do God only knows what, and to top it off they're psychic!"

"Shego," Ron said, cautiously taking her aside, "you told me that you wished that someone else had your powers. Well, here's your chance. They have powers. Raise them to be better than you."

* * *

Author's Notes:

The story is 90% finished, sitting in a file on my hard drive as I go through it, trying to fix up the inconsistencies and bad writing practices I'd thrown in when I was first hammering the story out. It should be up to par soon.


	13. Chapter Thirteen: Hargrove Residence

Chapter Thirteen: Hargrove Residence, 185 Adams Avenue, Go City

We few,  
We happy few,  
We band of brothers…

5:29:47 PM; Friday, October 6th, 2000…

"Kids, time to come in for dinner!" Eva shouted from the kitchen window.

"Dinner!" Shego shouted back. She descended from the tree house, followed shortly thereafter by Hanque, Edward, Samuel, and Quinton. The five stormed into the house, making a mad rush for the washroom by the garage.

She turned back to the vegetables she was slicing and smiled warmly. "Life is perfect," she said.

Edgar smiled back, dipped a bite-sized slice of bread into the marinara sauce he was cooking, and held it out to her. She stuck her head out and grabbed it from him with her teeth, all the while continuing her prep work. "When's the last time I told you how much I love you?" he asked, laughing.

"Too long," she replied, picking up the cutting board and dumping the contents into a hot frying pan. "Oh, I do so love the smell of garlic and onion sautéing."

"The scent fills the house for the entire evening," Edgar said, taking a deep breath and savoring the aroma. "Italian night is always my favorite." He pulled a plate of breadcrumb-coated chicken cutlets from the fridge and placed them in the pan with the garlic and onion.

"And listen to it sing!" Eva said with joy. "You cook nothing so beautiful as this dish at present."

"And there is nothing in this world so beautiful as you, my dear," he replied.

"Ew, mushy stuff!" Sam and Quinton said as they ran into the dining room; the other three ran in shortly thereafter.

"Children, your timing is, as usual, exceptional," Edgar said as he pulled the first piece of chicken from the pan and plated it on a mound of fettuccini. He poured a ladle of sauce over the chicken. Eva repeated his process as he carried the plate over to the table, placing it in front of his daughter, to whom he was closest, before returning to the kitchen.

Eva walked over to the table, carrying a prepared plate in each hand and placing them in front of Sam and Quinton. Shego picked up her fork slowly, and Eva pulled it from her hand and placed it on the table where it had previously rested. "You know the rules," she said, walking back into the kitchen. She returned a minute later, followed by her husband, each carrying a pair of plates, and each setting one in front of their sons before taking their seats. They closed their eyes, followed shortly by their children.

"Heavenly father," Edgar said, "we thank you this evening for everything you've done for us, and we ask you to bless this food that it may nourish our bodies. This I ask in your name, amen." He opened his eyes to the sight of his children voraciously digging into their food. He glanced sideways at Eva, who was laughing under her breath. Rolling his eyes, he, too, began to eat his dinner. "So, anything exciting happen at school today?"

* * *

3:00:01 PM; Saturday, October 7th, 2000…

Edgar and Eva ran over the remains of the sliding glass door which used to serve as the rear entry to their house; the frame itself remained intact, but the glass had been shattered and blown into their home by the concussive force of the impact. Eva clasped her hand over her mouth at the sight of the damage. The tree which once held the treehouse had fallen, the lower half of the trunk destroyed by the impact; the tree house, thrown clear of the tree, came to rest its side on the ground a few feet away, and was only slightly worse for wear. Slowly, Hanque climbed out of the structure, followed immediately by Sam, Edward, and Quinton. "What happened?" Edgar asked, awe-struck.

"There was a meteor," Hanque said, dusting himself off and helping his brothers to their feet. "It crashed into the tree."

"Where's April?" Eva asked, looking around for her daughter but too distraught to do anything more.

"I'm over here," she shouted; the fallen tree rustled as she struggled. "Could someone come over here and, you know, _get__me__out__of__here_!" Suddenly the tree burst into green flames; the leaves scorched in seconds, the branches continuing to burn, glowing in green iridescence. The shape of a woman was seen through the fire as it slowly climbed through the charred branches. Out of the flames she crawled, choking on the smoke as she escaped.

"April!" Eva screamed.

"What's happening to me?" she asked as she collapsed to the ground.

* * *

2:15:13 AM; Sunday, October 8th, 2000…

April screamed as she was thrown once again into consciousness, her nightmares waking her. Eva took her hand as she began to reacquaint herself with her surroundings. She looked over at her mom with a look of desperate pleading in her eyes, and attempted to speak, but nothing came out.

Eva stood and pulled April out of bed. "Come on," she said, "if neither of us can sleep we might as well get something done." She led her still-disoriented daughter down into the basement, where her research lab was set up, and pulled a couple of lab coats from the wall. She handed one to April and said, "I never feel right working without my lab coat; a good luck charm, as it were." April smiled, amused by her mother's fondness for good luck charms, and pulled on the lab coat. "Roll up your sleeve; we need a fresh sample."

April did as she was asked, rolling her right sleeve above her elbow as Eva prepared to draw the blood. She wiped the inside of her elbow with iodine and held it out, and Eva inserted the needle. She let the vial fill for a few seconds before pulling it out and setting it aside, handing her daughter a bandage. April applied it, involuntarily rubbing the other small marks on her arm; the fading remainders of previous blood-drawing sessions itched whenever she thought about them. Cautiously, she hovered around her mother, trying to understand what she was doing while Eva used her lab equipment; banks of computers whirred to life as she worked at a feverish pace, entering codes and commands into the main terminal, occasionally darting off to another piece of equipment for a few seconds before returning to her central post. April's watchful eyes paid close attention to everything her mother did; knowing of the action, even if not knowing the purpose, brought her comfort.

After fifteen minutes of barely acknowledging her daughter's presence, she turned to April, bent down, and kissed her on the forehead. "You should go back to sleep," she said wearily, taking her hand. She glanced back at the screen one final time before leading her daughter out of the basement and back into her room.

"What if I wake up again?" April asked as she climbed into bed.

"Then I'll be right here beside you," Eva replied, sitting down next to the bed; she began to sing. "Goodnight, my angel, time to close your eyes, and save these questions for another day…"

* * *

2:37:28 PM; Thursday, October 26th, 2000…

Eva sprung from her chair as the results spat out from the printer. Attempting to keep her composure, she scanned the papers. As she read, the expression on her face slowly faded from excitement and anticipation to disappointment. She stood in silence for a few minutes, her mind running over every possible option of what to do next, before she walked out of her lab and into the dining room; April and Edgar were at the table playing Dominos. April looked up at her and smiled before noticing her expression. Without a word between them, Eva handed her the papers she still carried and took a seat at the table. "You can't do anything?" April asked.

"Maybe in ten years," Eva replied, "but not any time soon. I can isolate it, but we're still too far off, scientifically, to be able to create a retrovirus from extrapolated DNA." April drew on her expression of disappointment. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, but there's nothing anyone can do until we hit another breakthrough."

Edgar looked at Eva, the disappointment spreading to him as well. "Does this at least mean that I can have my wife back?" he asked. "It's been far too lonely with you working in the lab constantly."

"Of course," she said, finding small consolation in the promised return to family life, "there's nothing else I can do; best I just return to normal life."

"Good," Edgar replied. "It's Tex-Mex night tonight, and I could use the assistance of my muse."

* * *

7:36:14 PM; Tuesday, October 31st, 2000…

Eva gently pulled the ancient violin from its case and held it half way into position before setting it back in its case. "It shouldn't be this hard," she said to herself. "I failed, and there's nothing more I can do about it." Slowly she picked it up again and leveled it to her chin. Carefully she raised the bow and drew it across the strings, gently playing the melody she was improvising in her head.

"May I join you, dear?" Edgar asked as he strolled otherwise silently into the room.

Eva turned around and smiled. "Please," she replied. She walked over to another table and began searching through the folders of music stacked atop. "Bach, Beethoven, Brahms, Chopin… Ah, Strauss. Lava-Ströme, duet, piano or violin, love?"

"Piano, if I could," he said as he made his way around the piles of folders filled with music. He sat at the piano and folded the music in front of him before Eva handed him his part. He took it and set it aside before playing out a few chords. "When you're ready."

"You don't need the music?" Eva asked as she set her own music upon the stand next to her.

"This one I have memorized," he replied as he switched from chords to scales, limbering his fingers.

Eva brought her violin back up to her chin and said, "Whenever you're ready."

* * *

12:47:36 PM; Thursday, November 2nd, 2000…

"Hello?" Eva said as she answered the phone. "Hello? Hello?" She drug out the final 'hello' before hanging up the phone and setting it on the table beside her. As she turned back to her work, the doorbell rang. She sighed, exasperated, stood up, and walked to the door. Trying not to glare at whomever she found on the other side, she smiled half-heartedly and opened the door.

"Mrs. Hargrove?" the man in the black suit on the other side of the door asked.

"Yes?" Eva replied.

"Good evening, ma'am," he continued, looking past her, inspecting the inside of the home. "My name is Robert Stanton, and I've been sent here to speak to you about your daughter's rare skin pigmentation disease. May I come in?"

"Uh, sure," Eva said, slightly unnerved by the man. She stepped out of the way and he brushed past her, walking straight down the hall and into the dining room where she had previously been working. Eva watched him as he went, closing and locking the door as she did, before following him into the room.

"Working on a cure for your April's uncommon malady?" he asked, fingering through the notes she'd left on the table.

"Wouldn't you, if it were your daughter?" Eva asked, suspicion clear in her voice.

"Why would I want to get rid of such a rare gift?" he asked. "From what I've read on the condition, it gives her incredible tolerance to heat, even to the point where one with the condition could light their hands on fire and not be harmed…"

"And just where does one read about this condition?" Eva asked, her voice holding an edge of anger.

"Oh, here and there," Stanton replied casually. "A little here." He pointed to the papers on the table. "Mostly there." He pointed to the door to her lab.

"You hacked my computers?" Eva said, now full-on enraged.

"Don't think of it as hacking," he said, a note of tension in his voice, "think of it as a government-sanctioned repurposing of information, wherein your cure attempt has been repurposed as a way for us to make more of your daughter. Think of it; an army of people with the ability to throw fire hot enough to melt through a tank, or with the ability to fight in the hottest desert sands without heat fatigue."

"What about my sons?" Eva growled.

"Oh, their abilities are useful as well, I'm sure; an army of clones all controlled by the master copy, who can shrink at will to infiltrate the most difficult areas and who can throw a battle tank across the city with one throw. But the ability to throw fire, to have an unlimited reserve of, if you'll excuse the unintentional pun in this, firepower, well, that's just invaluable," he said, taking a seat where Eva had previously been.

"If you have my research, why do you need me?" she asked, walking into the kitchen and pulling a large salami from the fridge, which she proceeded to slice thin.

"Because, Mrs. Hargrove, while we have your research, and we can and have retrieved samples of our own, we simply can't replicate your research; you have a particular gift," he said, looking through the papers again.

"I think it's time for you to leave, Mr. Stanton," she said, walking over to him, knife in hand.

"Just remember, a girl like your daughter, she'd rather burn than let your bury her," Stanton said. "I'll just leave this here for you, in case you change your mind." He pulled a card from his pocket and placed it on top of the pile of papers.

* * *

2:27:43 AM; Friday, November 3rd, 2000…

"I didn't think you'd still be awake," Edgar said as he climbed into bed.

"Neither did I," Eva said, turning over to face him. "What gave it away?"

"You breathe very deeply when you're asleep, just like April," he replied. "What's on your mind?"

"A man stopped by today," Eva said. "He wants me to work for him, trying to replicate April's powers."

"And you're considering it?" Edgar said, concern in his eyes.

"What gave you that idea?" Eva asked.

"I'm a con man, dear; I read people for a living," he replied. "Nobody should have those powers, but just because our little girl has them doesn't mean that we should try balancing the equation by giving them to others."

"I know, it's just…" she said, her voice trailing off. "She's so lonely. Most of the kids at her school are making fun of her now. Maybe if I could give others her powers, she wouldn't be considered a freak."

"Maybe if she let people know what she really could do, they'd think she was some sort of hero or something," he suggested half-heartedly.

"Or they'd cart he off and subject her to a lifetime of tests, dissecting her to see what gives her that power," she countered. "But if I found the solution, they'd have no need for her."

"Follow your heart, love," he replied, kissing her on the forehead. "I'll be there for you and our kids no matter what you choose."

* * *

8:39:46 AM; Monday, November 13th, 2000…

"I'm glad you came to your senses, Mrs. Hargrove," Stanton said as the train descended into the underground research facility. "I'm sure you'll find the facilities most accommodating to your needs."

"As long as there isn't traffic when I try to leave, I'm sure it'll be just fine," she said, staring out the window. "I trust you have my team ready?"

"Yes, of course," he replied, opening his briefcase and handing her a file from within. "Physicist Gordon Shakespeare, 'no relation to the author', geneticist Eli Dunham, and xenobiologist Isaac Morton. There should be enough diversity within those three that, with you, there shouldn't be a single problem whose solution is beyond your reach. And if there is, we'll bring in someone else to help out." The train lurched to a stop in front of a giant steel door, and Stanton took a seat on one of the benches.

"So, what's this place supposed to be?" Eva asked as she continued to thumb through the file.

"Area 51, or someplace like that," Stanton replied listlessly. "But that's so _boring_. I want to talk about you, and your plans now that you're here."

"I'm going to cure my children," she said tersely.

Stanton dropped his head back, letting it rest on the headrest bar, and sighed, "And?"

"And I suppose you want me to try to replicate their powers as well, don't you?" Eva said, rolling her eyes. "Yes, yes, I'll get around to that, too."

"Well, our facilities are open to any sort of other project you should wish to attempt, as well," Stanton said with a note of irritation. "And we do have dormitories, if you feel the need to stay."

* * *

12:43:56 PM; Wednesday, January 31st, 2001

"Where's mom?" April asked, confused.

"She's gone," Edgar replied, holding his daughter close.

"When's she coming back?" April asked, holding onto her father, her confusion growing.

"She's not," he said as he began to cry.

"Dad?" Hanque shouted from the living room. "Why are there people on the lawn from the TV station?"

* * *

Author's Notes:

So, it's been quite a long time... In the months it's been since I updated regularly, I've started writing a novel. I'll put more details out when it gets further along. Other than that, I've just been busy with life.

This story only has two chapters left (plus a small epilogue), but there is a sequel in the works.


	14. Chapter Fourteen: Nightmares II

Chapter Fourteen: Nightmares II

Goodnight, demon slayer, goodnight  
Now it's time to close your tired eyes  
There are devils to slay and dragons to ride  
If they see you coming, hell, they better hide  
Goodnight, goodnight, goodnight  
Goodnight my little slayer goodnight

Global Justice Meeting Room...

Dr. Director entered the small conference room to mixed reaction.

All Global Justice members stood and saluted, including Ron and Agent Du, while Shego saluted mockingly from her seat. Kim and Dr. James Possible finished their conversation and turned to her, and Wade appeared on a screen which took the place of one of the chairs. Sheldon Director just smiled victoriously.

"Shall we?" Dr. Director asked, walking to the head of the table. A projector flickered on overhead, and she picked up a remote from the table. "Details have been kept to the last minute for the sake of security. Considering our opponent, I thought it was prudent to secure our operation as tightly as possible." She pressed a button on the remote, throwing up a picture of the Origa International headquarters building. "This is our target. You should all recognize it." Kim squirmed in her chair. "Our mission is twofold: Secure all personnel related to the psychosocial experimentation, and secure this man." She pressed a button on the remote again, this time throwing up an image of a man. "This is Yvarra Origa, head of Origa International. He is our primary target. Our intelligence suggests that he has operational oversight over every project undertaken at his company. As such, he will be invaluable in discerning exactly the extent of the illegal activities conducted by his organization."

"It can't just be us," Shego said.

"All of the other teams have been briefed separately and individually to minimize the chance of the mission being compromised by a leak," Dr. Director said. "Also, if there is a leak, we can track it to the team responsible."

"Why is my dad here?" Kim asked.

"He's here to brief us on the layout of the facility. If you would be so kind, Dr. Possible," Dr. Director replied, taking her seat.

Dr. Possible stood and walked to the head of the table, taking the remote from Dr. Director. "Thanks to the Athena II satellite we recently developed, we were able to take scans of the facility," he said. He fumbled with the remote, and the image changed to that of a rendering of the building. "This is a three-dimensional rendering of the Origa International facility. Unfortunately, we were unable to detect any of the contents of the rooms, but we have a functional layout that will allow you to navigate the facility safely." He handed the remote back to Dr. Director. "If you want to reconsider, we still have the option of destroying the facility from orbit.

"Thank you, Dr. Possible, but my decision stands," she said, standing up. "Our team will be split into two forces. Director Du and I will secure the personnel, while Agent Stoppable, Ms. Possible, and Ms. Hargrove will secure Mr. Origa. Thank you again for you assistance, Dr. Possible."

"Anything to help," he replied.

"Alright, dismissed," she said, walking out of the room.

"Wait," Kim called out. Dr. Director turned around. "How do you two know the man you call Mr. Blue?"

There was a pause. "Shego and I used to work with him," she started. "For the CIA. When our director went..."

"Our director went off the deep end," Shego continued. "So we left. She started Global Justice, and I went to work with Drakken full-time."

Dr. Director walked out.

"Why?" Kim asked as she turned to her dad.

"Because they hurt you," Dr. Possible replied.

"Dad, I-" she began.

"Go give 'em hell, Kimmy-cub," he said, kissing her on the forehead. "Shego." He walked over to her and extended his hand. Shego took it. "Keep my little girl safe."

* * *

Mr. Dr. and Mrs. Dr. Possible's Bedroom...

"How was your day?" James asked from the bathroom as he got ready to go to bed for the night.

"I operated today," Ann replied, already in bed. "Removed a tumor; hopefully that'll stop the patient's extreme bipolar tendencies."

"How'd it go?" James asked.

"Well, I hope," Ann replied. "We won't know for a few days."

"Another life saved by the great Ann Possible," James said.

"How was Kim?" Ann asked.

"Our daughter really is growing up," James said as he stepped out of the master bathroom.

"Aren't you terrified?" Ann asked.

"Are you kidding? They flew me in on a moment's notice without telling me what was going on or what I'd be doing, and I found out what happened to Kim only minutes before seeing her. Of course I'm terrified," James said. "But I also realize that she can take care of herself, and we'll still be there for her when she needs us. And with Shego…"

"Do you think she's serious?" Ann asked. "I'm not sure I believe the story about her being drugged to fall in love with Kim. It's a little too convenient. The people in charge would have to be…" She stopped mid-sentence.

"They'd have to have planned all of this out?" James asked. "Yeah, I thought of that, too. No, she hasn't been involved with anyone on that level before, but you underestimate her." He sat on the bed and took his wife's hand. "She's as smart as either of us, and she has your fighting spirit." He smiled at her, and she smiled back.

"I just worry, is all," Ann said.

"Of course you do," James replied. "She's our daughter; we have to worry. Just think about all the good she can do, just like you always have."

"Where's she going tomorrow, anyway?" Ann asked.

"She's going after the people who hurt her," James replied. "Whatever happens, I guess this is where it ends."

* * *

Kim and Shego's Bedroom...

The door swung open silently as Elspeth entered her mothers' bedroom. Silently, she climbed onto the bed next to Shego and laid down, snuggling close to her. Shego stirred and rolled over, looking at her daughter. "What's wrong, Elspeth?" she asked.

"I can't sleep," Elspeth replied sleepily. "I think I have a monster."

Shego smiled and said, "Alright, let's get you back to bed, then." Elspeth crawled off the bed and Shego climbed out, picking up her daughter and carrying her back to her room. "What makes you think that there's a monster?"

"I keep hearing people talking," Elspeth said. "Mommy was crying, and a bad man was laughing at her."

"Don't worry, you just had a bad dream," Shego replied.

"It wasn't a dream!" Elspeth insisted.

"Alright, I guess I'll just have to check for monsters," Shego said, putting Elspeth on her bed. She went over and closed the door. "No monsters there." She opened the closet. "No monsters there, either." She got down on the floor and looked under the bed. "Nope, no monsters in here. We must have scared them off. See? There's nothing to be scared of." Elspeth stared at her with a deep and profound sadness. "What else is wrong?"

"Something bad's going to happen tomorrow," Elspeth cried. "You and mommy are going to… I don't know, but it's bad!"

Shego took her daughter in her arms again. "There's a monster that lives beneath your bed," she sung. "Oh, for crying out loud, it's a futon on the floor, he must be flat as a board. There's a creature that lurks behind the door. Though I've checked there 15 times, when I leave then he arrives every night.

"Tell the monster that lives beneath your bed to go somewhere else instead, or you'll kick him in the head! Tell the creature that lurks behind the door, if he knows what's good he won't come here no more, cause you'll kick in his butt at the count of four!

"Goodnight, demon slayer, goodnight; now it's time to close your tired eyes. There are devils to slay and dragons to ride; if they see you coming, hell, they better hide. Goodnight, goodnight, goodnight, goodnight my little slayer, goodnight.

"Tell the monster that eats children that you taste bad, and you're sure you'd be the worst he's ever had. If he eats you, don't you fret, just cut him open with an axe. Don't regret it, he deserved it, he's a cad.

"Tell the harpies that land on your bed post that at the count of five you'll roast them alive. Tell the devil it's time you gave him his due; he should go back to hell, he should shake in his shoes, 'cause the mightiest, scariest creature is you!

"Goodnight, demon slayer, goodnight; now it's time to close your tired eyes. There are devils to slay and dragons to ride; if they see you coming, hell, they better hide. Goodnight, goodnight, goodnight, goodnight my little slayer, goodnight.

"I won't tell you, there's nothing beneath your bed. I won't sell you that it's all in your head. This world of ours is not as it seems; the monsters are real but they're not in your dreams, so learn what you can from the beasts you defeat, as you'll need it for some of the people you'll meet.

"Goodnight, demon slayer, goodnight; now it's time to close your tired eyes. There are devils to slay and dragons to ride; if they see you coming, hell, they better hide. Goodnight, goodnight, goodnight, goodnight my little slayer, goodnight.

"Goodnight, goodnight, goodnight. Goodnight, Elspeth."

"Goodnight, mommy," Elspeth replied, smiling, as Shego tucked her into bed and ran her fingers through her daughter's hair one last time before standing up. "Mommy?"

"Yes, dear?" Shego replied.

"What's a futon?" Elspeth asked.

"I'll show you in the morning," Shego replied before returning to her own room.

"Bad dreams?" Kim asked as Shego climbed back into bed.

"Your dreams," Shego replied. Kim signed and turned over, hugging her pillow. "She knows about tomorrow, and she's scared. She doesn't know the details, but she knows we're going to do 'something bad'."

"I'm scared, too," Kim said.

"Of course you are," Shego replied, wrapping her arm around Kim. "You'd have to be crazy not to be scared."

"What about you?" Kim asked.

"Get some sleep," Shego replied. "You're going to need it."

* * *

Author's Notes:

Only one chapter left before the big finale! I've been sitting on the last chapter since about the time I published chapter three. And then I can finish up the beginnings of the next story in the series (which will be another giganto-chapter like the first one here), so keep your eyes open. It'll be called "Tertiary". Still haven't decided if I'll do a third story, but I've got plenty of time to decide that.

As for the kids, I know they didn't really have much of a role in this story, but they're far more important in the next one, so don't think that I forgot about them.

And yes, Shego is singing Voltaire's "Goodnight Demon Slayer" to her daughter as a lullaby. Because she's a badass.


	15. Chapter Fifteen: The Nightmare Tango

Chapter X: The Nightmare Tango…

There are no witty or insightful statements to be made.  
There are only evil men to be wrought to dust,  
And good men to do it.

…In Shego's Jet, in the Lobby, in the Executive Waiting Room…

Dr. Director stood in the middle of Shego's jet; a camera and an of array screens mounted onto the wall in front of her, Kim, Ron, Shego, and Director Du to the side. "Ladies and gentlemen, we are about to begin Global Justice's largest operation to date," she said, addressing the camera. "ETAs?"

"Ten minutes," each of the men on the screens said in turn.

"Excellent," Dr. Director said, "they'll have no time to react. I apologize for keeping you in the dark as long as I have, but I could not risk such a large scale attack being compromised by a leak. Alfa and Bravo teams are en route to the Central Intelligence Agency's two largest facilities outside of the United States; Charlie, Delta, and Echo teams are headed to the CIA headquarters in Langley, Virginia; Foxtrot, comprised of Kimberly, Ron, Shego, Director Du, and myself, is headed to the Origa International facility. Your orders are the same; detain any persons suspected to be involved in biological or psychological tests, including the subjects, and bring them back to Global Justice for evaluation." She paused, and considered her next words carefully. With trepidation, she added, "Use of deadly force is authorized, but keep the body count as low as possible. I want to be able to sleep tonight knowing that we did more good than harm."

The agents on the screens saluted and ended the communication. The center screen flickered to Wade. "It wasn't easy," he said, "but the records I found for the facility indicate that after Kim's rescue, they moved the entire division underground, literally. You'll find them in basement level two."

"Thanks, Wade," Kim said.

"Be careful, Kim," he said before his screen went blank.

"You think they have any idea what's about to hit them?" Shego asked as she walked into the cockpit to land the jet.

"Not a damn clue," Director Du said uncharacteristically. He cracked his knuckles and pulled a cigar from his pocket.

"You've really stepped up to the whole tough guy director bit," Ron said.

Director Du turned toward the back and said, "I go where I please, and I please where I go." Ron rolled his eyes.

"Save it for the fight," Shego said as she emerged from the cockpit, the jet descending. As the rear hatch opened, the five of them stepped out of the jet and onto the street, walking in formation to the front door of the Origa International office; Kim led the pack, followed by Shego and Dr. Director, with Director Du and Ron taking up the back. Director Du and Ron, both wearing extremely dark sunglasses, carried assault rifles, lowered but ready for action, Dr. Director had her hand on her revolver, and Shego kept her hands in her pockets; only Kim kept her hands free and open. The doors slid open silently, and the few people in the lobby scattered to the sides, fleeing to the relative safety of parts of the building behind locked doors.

The secretary started to bring the phone to her ear. A shot rang out, and pieces of the handset scattered around the shocked, but otherwise unharmed, young woman.

"Nice shot," Kim said, keeping her gaze locked on the woman at the desk.

"Thanks," Dr. Director replied, holstering her revolver. "I'd give them three more seconds before they get here."

As she said that, the doors burst open and the room was flooded with guards. They surrounded the party, aiming their rifles at them. "Freeze!" one of them shouted. "On the ground! Now!"

The five dropped to the ground and Shego drew her hands from her pockets; she was holding two flash grenades in each. She threw them into the air and detonated with a blast of her powers before the guards could respond. As Kim, Shego, and Dr. Director recovered from the shock, Director Du and Ron hastily shot the opposition forces, tranquilizing them. The men fell down, and the woman forward, knocked out by the harsh sedatives.

"Damn, that does work fast," Dr. Director said.

"Just like old times, isn't it, Betty?" Shego said, turning to her. "If we're not out of here in an hour, take the jet and get everyone out; we'll find our own way." Director Du nodded turned to follow Dr. Director down one of the hallways.

Ron, Kim, and Shego made their way through the halls, Ron tranquilizing the security personnel as they came, Shego 'deactivating' the security measures with carefully-placed blasts, and Kim navigating the facility by the map on her Kimmunicator. They climbed the stairs to the nineteenth floor; the top floor, the CEO's office, was only accessible by a private staircase from the executive lobby.

"Hello, Ronald," said a voice from the ceiling. The trio stopped, and Ron, who was at the back, made his way to the front of the group.

"Go," he said, "I'll handle this." Shego turned and walked toward the executive staircase, dragging Kim by the arm, until she, too, turned and ran for the stairs. "Hello, Joanne. I don't suppose you were just playing along all this time, and you're really just ready to come back to Global Justice?"

"I'm sorry, Ronald," she replied sweetly, jumping from her perch above and landing in front of him. "I really did like you, I honestly did, but now my responsibility is to make sure that only Shego and Kimberly get to my boss. Unfortunately, I have concluded that the only way of keeping you from them is to incapacitate you, either by rendering you unconscious or by your death."

"Well, let's get this over with," Ron said, his mystical monkey powers taking control. Joanne dove at him, and he moved out of the way at the last second; she crashed into the wall behind him. He spun around and attempted to connect with a kick, but she dropped out of the way as he started, countering with a fist to the kidneys. Ron winced as the force of the blow impacted his body, and he stumbled for a second, giving Joanne opportunity to grab him by the leg and throw him across the room. He slid to a stop shy of the wall and quickly jumped up.

"Well, you're quite a bit more adept of a fighter than I'd anticipated," she said. She pulled a telescoping staff from behind her back and swung it around, extending it to full length. "I'd heard you had some sort of magical powers, but I didn't believe it."

"Eh, it comes and goes," he replied. He jumped to the chairs, then to the low-hanging light, and finally to the steel frame which made up the structure holding up the vaulted glass ceiling. He held his position, catching his breath, and watched Joanne skillfully jump from where she stood to the frame with push against the wall.

Ron jumped from beam to beam, making his way to his adversary. At the last beam, he lunged at her. She thrust out her staff, the tip of a spear emerging from the end as it reached its destination. Ron grabbed it and ripped it from her hands, pulling her forward. She screamed as she fell to the ground three stories below her.

Ron dove after her, but Joanne landed flat on her chest. He landed at her side, grabbed the girl who was gasping for breath, and carried her out of the room.

* * *

…And In the Boss' Office.

"Shego, promise me that you won't go overboard on this guy," Kim said as she walked up the stairs to the empty office of the head of the facility.

She glared at Kim. "Kim, this isn't like the other fights you've been in," she snapped. "These guys aren't like Dementor, or Drakken, or Gemini. These guys won't think twice about torturing you just to hear you scream; you've seen that for yourself. They won't go after me because I'm the more threatening target. They won't put you in comical deathtraps. They'll shoot you in the gut and leave you to bleed out in agony. You can't expect them to play nice just because you're little miss Princess, and the sooner you learn that, the better."

"But-" Kim began.

"No! Remember what they did to you; the nightmares, the constant fear of being killed by your friends? They did that!" Shego shouted. "Don't, _do__not_, underestimate the capacity for wickedness."

"Don't go spreading rumors," said a voice from above, "at least not without getting to know me first." Kim and Shego looked up; a man, about six feet tall, jumped from the catwalks above and landed on his feet between the two girls. He was wearing a wide-brimmed hat and a duster over a business suit, and was dripping wet. "Nasty storm outside. It must be nice to be able to fly that jet of yours."

"Well, it beats walking," Shego said.

He laughed a little. "That it does, that it does. My name's Yvarra Origa, and this is my facility," he said as he took off his hat and coat and hung them up by the door.

"It's a pleasure to meet you," Shego replied. "My name is April Hargrove, though you'd probably know me better as Shego; this is Kimberly Possible."

"Your reputations precede you," Yvarra said. He pulled a smoking pipe from the table next to his chair and lit it. "If I remember right, we acquired a part of our viral genetics research from a Hargrove."

"Are you the reason I was brought in for brainwashing?" Kim asked bluntly, trying to change the topic of conversation.

He puffed on his pipe for a moment and said simply, "Dear, it's much more than simple brainwashing. Quite frankly, it's a masterpiece; a symphony. The brainwashing was only the trigger. It's a neurovirus, one we engineered to mimic the effects of Schizophrenia; it winds its way into your DNA, beautifully and elegantly replacing the existing virus, targeting itself to the forthcoming programming, such as the 'brainwashing', as you put it. So, to answer your question simply, yes, I am responsible."

"Why?" she asked. Shego held out her hand as a sign to stop, but Kim pushed it away.

"Because, my dear," he said, taking the pipe from his mouth, "you were, quite simply, the best candidate for the job. You're strong, agile, well-trained, and, most importantly, a hero; you're good at what you do, and people trust you. On a less selfish note, this world needs shadow warriors, now more than ever; men and women willing to do whatever it takes to protect the world in which we live. We need people who can shake the world with the clap of their hands and terrify the devil himself with the sound of their voices. In short, Kimberly Anne Possible, this world needs a version of you which was willing and able to justify the ends, no matter the means. There is no room for a paladin, child, and you're too good to waste. If you'd not been taken prematurely," he glared at Shego for a second, "you'd have been a perfectly-integrated subject; your personality would have remained intact, and nobody would have been able to tell the difference. Quite simply, you'd have been the perfect villain, and my tenth symphony." He stood and removed his coat and shirt, revealing a man heavily muscled. From behind him stretched out four robotic arms, their movements mimicking roughly the movements of his natural arms. "Some of the best ideas have come from the world of fantasy." Kim had a shot of inspiration dash across her mind. "Do not confuse my intentions, dear; I'm evil because it's who I am. I do bad things to good people with no reason for doing them, except that I am evil."

Kim opened her mouth to object, but Yvarra shot out his robotic arms, pinning the two against the wall by their arms. "You don't get it," he said, strained. "I'm not evil because interfacing with this machine has corrupted an otherwise clean mind with its lack of morality." He stepped up to Kim and spoke directly into her face. "I designed this interface _to__be__evil_! It wasn't some rookie mistake; I couldn't go on with my plans while I had a conscience, so I used my not inconsiderable intellect to construct a mind for myself which was free of the limiting and degrading moral constraints of the human condition!" Kim stared at him with a mixed look of disgust and confusion. "You pathetic, self-righteous little bitch, you really don't get it. This is who I want to be. This is who I have always wanted to be!" He pulled Kim's arms straight out, the strain visible as the joints were almost pulled apart, and Kim let out a scream.

"Leave her alone, you psychopathic bastard!" Shego shouted. Her eyes grew wide, and green flames danced across her hands. She let out a blood-curdling war cry, a concussive blast shooting out from her fists. The force was enough to knock Yvarra off balance and onto the floor, pulling the girls from the wall but not freeing their arms from his grasp.

"Impressive," he said dryly, "I didn't expect _that_." He threw Kim through a glass wall and grabbed Shego's legs with his now-free limbs.

Shego looked over at Kim, who was lying on the floor, unconscious but visibly unharmed. "I'm going to enjoy watching you burn," she said.

"You'll get no such pleasure, my dear," he said. His face contorted into a twisted grin. He pulled Shego's arms outward and up, slowly applying more force. There was a sickening pop as her right shoulder was pulled out of its socket. Shego let out a stifled scream.

Kim awoke at the sound of Shego's scream, and pushed herself up from the floor. Yvarra turned his head and looked at her, and said, "Well, that's different."

Kim was standing, head down, hunched forward slightly, arms hanging freely, legs spread apart for balance, panting. She tilted her head up to him, and through her eyes was staring a new person. "I am the darkness and the hate and the wickedness you forced in this poor girl's mind. I am a split of her personality which is, like you, unburdened by mere mortal constructs of right and wrong," she growled, her voice becoming more monster than human. "You fucked up, you worthless little prick; you never should have picked someone as strong as me to try and twist to your own wicked ways. It worked; you made a Kim Possible without any morality whatsoever. I am now a beast with nothing stopping me from getting whatever I want. Unfortunately for you, I happen to want you dead."

She jumped through the broken window with surprising speed, and before Yvarra could react, she tackled him. He let go of Shego, her body falling to the floor. Shego pushed herself against the wall, trying to avoid being hit. "Kim, what…" she stammered, unable to continue.

"Don't worry, she's still in here," Kim said, returning to her hunched-over fighting stance while she waited for Yvarra to recover. "I'm just a small part of her mind. Your arm getting pulled from its socket was the last straw for her; it broke off an already fractured part of her mind, giving life to me." She turned to Yvarra, who was still dazed from the impact which had sent him into the side of a file cabinet, denting its solid steel a solid three inches. "Get up, _bitch_."

He stood and wiped the blood from his lip. "I'm not the bitch," he coughed. He lunged at her, the machine leading the charge. He threw two of his arms toward Kim's; she ducked, grabbed his arms from below, and threw him over her and through the broken window. A shard of glass still in the frame cut his thigh. "Ouch," he said mockingly as he rolled to his feet. "So, the little whelp _does_ have some martial arts training."

Kim growled. She grabbed a steel rod which had fallen and lunged at him. He grabbed the rod with two arms, lifted it above her head, and tried to twist it out of her hands, which gave her enough time to pull herself up and launch herself into the air. She caught her boot under his jaw as she did a back flip and threw him backward over the guard rail around the staircase shaft. He threw the rod into a wall in his office and caught himself on the bars before he fell. He climbed back up in time to receive a massive series of blows as Kim swung wildly at him. When his wits caught up with him, he grabbed Kim by the neck with two of his arms and threw her back into his office. Kim's head struck the wall, dazing her from the force of the blow.

Shego stood up, still unable to use her right arm, and lit up her left hand. She hurled blasts toward Yvarra, screaming, "Keep your hands off my Kimmie!"

"Oh, fuck off," he replied. He climbed into his office and smacked her with his organic left arm. He grabbed her good arm below the wrist with one of his artificial arms and dragged her over to Kim, who was shaking off the hit she'd taken. "Now, play nice and _die_."

Kim was unable to get to her feet before Yvarra's boot came to rest on her neck. "You're forgetting some thing," she coughed.

"What? What could I have possibly forgotten?" he asked, pushing harder on her throat.

Shego swung her leg around and tripped Yvarra, sending him falling forward. The force on her arm was enough to snap the bones in her forearm, and she let out another stifled scream. "Go to hell!" she shouted through gritted teeth.

Kim pushed him off of her. As he climbed to his feet, she spun around and kicked him in the chest. She pulled the rod from the wall and drove it into his chest with all the force of her body.

Yvarra coughed, a thin mist of blood spraying from his lips. "Do you hate me?" he asked as Kim stood over him.

"No, she doesn't hate you," Kim replied. "She pities you, and she hates what she became because of you, but she does not hate you." Yvarra nodded slowly, coughed one final time, and closed his eyes.

She walked over to Shego, laid her hand on the broken left arm, and Shego nodded, closing her eyes and gritting her teeth to brace herself. Kim grabbed Shego's arm and set the bone. "I can't go anywhere with my shoulder out of its socket," she said.

"I know," Kim said. She walked over to the Yvarra's desk and said into the intercom, "Medical team to Yvarra's office immediately, and bring a splint for a broken arm." She walked back over to Shego and lifted her onto her feet.

"Earlier you said that Kim's still in there?" Shego asked. Kim nodded. "Can I talk to her?"

"You cannot," Kim replied. "We do not share a consciousness; while I am in control, she is unconscious. When I relinquish control, which I will do once we are safely away, Kim will regain control and remember nothing of my time in her body. The last thing she will remember is being thrown through the window and being knocked unconscious."

"What am I supposed to tell you, or her, or whoever it is? That I took him out with a dislocated right arm and a broken left? She'll never believe it," Shego said.

"She'll believe it," Kim replied. "She knows that you're stronger than anything you've ever shown her. But whatever happens, she must never know of me. If she ever finds out, she'll no doubt try to reconcile the two of us, which must never happen. Not only would it fail miserably, it would break her in the process. So, again, you kicked his ass and carried her out. Got it?"

Shego mumbled and sat on the desk for a few minutes until the medical team walked in. "Someone called for a medical team?" asked one of the two men.

"Treat her," Kim said, pointing to Shego. "Her left forearm has been broken and set, and her right shoulder has been popped out of its socket."

"And Mr. Origa?" the same man asked.

"Dead," Kim said without pause.

The other of the two men looked around the room and through the broken window. "What happened?" he asked, in shock at what he saw.

"He tried to kill us," Kim replied. "I am no tenth symphony."

* * *

Author's Note:

And there you have it. Or do you? Well, there's certainly more to come (I've already started writing it), so fear not, loyal fans. If you're interested in what happens immediately after, and don't mind a bit of a cliffhanger, I've included an epilogue. It's not much, just over a page in Word, but it's just supposed to wet your appetite.

See you Space Cowboy...


	16. Epilogue

Epilogue

Back in Shego's Jet…

"Shut it," Director Du said as he kicked a shackled scientist in the ass and pushed him into the jet, "or I'll rip off your head and shit down your neck."

Ron took him aside and said, "Will, just quoting Duke Nukem doesn't make you a badass."

"Who the hell is that?" he asked, mildly irate.

Ron shook his head and went over to Kim, who was sleeping on the floor of the jet. He knelt beside her and laid his hand on hers. "Whatever happened up there," he whispered, "what's wrong has been set right." He took a seat next to Dr. Director, who was looking over the mission reports of the other teams.

"We're ready to depart," Dr. Director shouted to the pilot. The jet slowly ascended.

Kim sat up slowly, awoken by the movement of the jet, dazed and taking in her surroundings. "Hey, you're up," Shego said.

"Mmmm," Kim replied, wits still scattered. "I feel like a completely new person. The voice is gone; all the anger and the nightmares, everything, all gone. For some reason, I'm just thankful to be alive." She paused for a second. "I feel really strange; what happened after I passed out?"

"He and I fought, and I won," she said simply, standing up and helping Kim to her feet. "Then we brought you back here, and Dr. Director gave you a shot of something which she said would help bring you around. It's got some painkillers in it, so you're feeling the effects."

"How's your shoulder?" Kim asked. "And what happened to your arm?"

"I hit him too hard," Shego said, smiling sweetly, almost wickedly. "I'll be good as new by tomorrow morning. Did you have any dreams while you were out?"

"No, nothing," Kim replied.

"It's for the best," Shego said.

* * *

CIA Black Site, Anchorage, Alaska…

"Mr. Blue, this is an unprecedented event," said the woman on the screen, veiled in black save her green eyes.

"Absolutely, ma'am," Black suit agreed. "Yvarra's dead, taking with him to the grave the blame for the events which have transpired. We should have enough time to deal with the aftermath and prepare for the next phase of our offensive."

"Is the next phase of our plan ready?" she asked.

"Yes, ma'am, it is. With the expertise of Amy Hall, we should be able to create all manner of chimera," Black Suit replied. "And with our mole inside the organization, we should encounter little resistance until they recover from her self-termination."

* * *

Atop the Empire State Building...

She climbed over the railing, sat atop one of the railings, and said, "I've traveled since; half the world. Art museums, bus stations, airports; always looking for you. It's cold; the world is cold without you. It is dark, and empty, and cold, and I need you, now more than ever. Where are you, my love; where did you go?"


End file.
